Whisper Softly Sweet, Dana
by foxs-dana
Summary: After an undercover operation goes terribly wrong, a serial killer nearly rapes and murders Scully. Mulder shows up in the nick of time and rescues her. But what he doesn’t realize is that death is not the end for evil. Chapter 24 added!Please R&R!
1. To Catch a Serial Killer

Title: Whisper Softly Sweet, Dana

Author: FoxsDana

Rating: R (for violence, adult themes and sexual situations)

Category/Keywords: Mulder/Scully angst, drama/horror

Spoilers: Pilot, Fight The Future, anything pre-season 6

Dedication: To all X-Philes present and future. To my online friend Brittany whose role-play we started helped me come up with this idea. Thanks Brittany! To all my devoted readers who encourage me to keep writing this stuff and believe in my work! To all the twisted horror flicks I've seen which also helped me come up with this idea.

Summary: After an undercover operation goes terribly wrong, a serial killer nearly rapes and murders Scully. Mulder shows up in the nick of time and shoots him dead. But what he doesn't realize is that death is not the end and that evil can never truly be vanquished.

Feedback: Please! I love it!

Archive: Sure! Just let me know where it's going!

Disclaimer: The characters of the X-Files are do not belong to me but are the property of Chris Carter, 20th Century Fox and 1013 Productions. Any similarities to the names or places of the fictional aspects of this story are purely coincidental.

* * *

Fox Mulder sat nervously in a van as he watched his partner get wired. He didn't like the feeling he was getting about this at all. It was almost like he was sending the lamb to the slaughter. Not that he was really responsible for this plan of action, he wasn't. He and Scully had not participated in that many undercover operations and now he knew why. It was one thing for them to go on one together but her going alone? He just didn't like that at all. He had been reassured by Skinner that Scully would be perfectly safe due to all the technical equipment they were using and the agents planted around the scene as well. But deep down he knew all it would take is one screw up and the entire operation could blow up in their face. And he just didn't want his partner to be a part of it. He and Scully had a close relationship and the last thing he would wish is any harm on her. He couldn't imagine his office or day without her. She challenged him and made him a better person each and every day.

"Ok, why don't we test that mike and see if it works, Agent Scully?" An FBI Agent replied as he made final adjustments to her device.

Scully cleared her throat. "Testing. Testing 1,2,3."

A thumbs up came from the control panel. "Ok, looks like we're good to go here. I'll just let you make the readjustments to your outfit."

Scully smiled before pulling her see through top back over her. Even with her bra showing while getting wired, she hadn't been nervous. There were some parts of being an FBI Agent that a female just had to accept and this was one of them. And besides, Mulder was there with her and he always made her feel safe. It wasn't like he had never seen her in her bra before. He had on the very first case they had ever worked on. And he had seen even more of her when he rescued her in the Arctic. She walked up to Mulder. "Mulder, what's wrong? I would have thought you would have been happy to see me dressed up like a hooker?" She asked giving him a teasing look. "Like one of your fantasies?"

"Scully, I may have possibly wanted to see you dressed in an outfit like this. But…not having to do what you are about to."

"What?" She placed her hands on the side of his face. "Mulder, you have nothing to worry about. You heard what Skinner said there are all kinds of equipment set up, I'm wired and there are also other agents out there too. I won't be alone."

"But he'll be out there too, Scully. We both know what terrible things this man is capable of. He's already proven that with his previous five victims. Those women died a horrible, slow-painful death, Scully. I just…I don't want you to be victim number six."

"I won't be."

"But this man…he's killed five times, Scully. FIVE times and we couldn't catch him then. He's outwitted us each time." He let out a sigh. "I just would feel better if I were going out there with you."

"You? Dressed as a hooker?" Scully asked raising her eyebrows. "No offense Mulder but that is one particular vision I do NOT want to see. And you would scare away the killer to boot."

Mulder gave her a half smile. "I was thinking more along the lines that I could have been your pimp. I can see it now. A striped outfit, a large hat with a feather in it, big jewelry and a cane. And you being my woman?"

"Is this another one of your fantasies?"

"Pimp daddy Mulder and his woman."

"Agent Scully?" Skinner replied walking up to her. "We're ready."

"Well, pimp daddy I have to go get in place. " She took her finger and placed it on his nose. "And you stop worrying ok? After this is all said and done, we can look back on this and laugh. And also feel the satisfaction of knowing we got this guy off the street."

"Ok." Mulder took a swallow. He had been mustering up the guts to take Scully out to dinner for months, hell years. It was true that he did have fantasies about her and wished they could be more than friends but he didn't want to do anything to jeopardize their friendship or partnership. But he decided to put his neck on the chopping block anyway. "Uh, Scully? I was wondering if…after we're done here that I might uh…maybe take you out to dinner?" He took in a breath waiting for what most assuredly would be rejection.

"Do you mean like a date?" She whispered back so no one else could hear.

"Uh, maybe. Sort of." Mulder shifted his feet nervously. "If you really don't want to though, I'd completely under…"

"I'd love to."

"You…you would?" He asked in an obviously surprised voice. "Great. Well…we'll…we'll talk about it when you get back."

"When I get back." She echoed. "I'd better get over there. Try not to worry ok, Pimp daddy?"

"Just be careful."

"I willl." Scully answered back with a smile before heading over to where Skinner was.

Skinner pulled out the all too familiar picture of the suspect they had been trying to catch for months. The man was in his late 20's or early 30's with dark hair and had piercing green eyes. He was almost the embodiment of evil itself staring back from the photo. "Ok, here is your suspect. We believe his name is Jeremy Reinsfeld. Or at least that's one of this many identities. He has also taken on various disguises according to witnesses including facial hair and glasses. He does have a distinguishable scar on his left cheek though which clearly marks him."

"I hope I don't have to be that close to him to make that distinction."

Skinner shook his head. "We have other agents planted around that area. They also know what they are looking for and keeping you in visionary sight will be a main priority. From the van here we will have a clear picture of you and the activity around you. And we will be able to pick up any kind of noise with the audio equipment hooked up to the wire you have. You will be quite protected, I assure you. Once you spot him, inform us and we will send the agents in to arrest him. But you have to be certain it's him otherwise you could blow this entire operation we have been planning for weeks. And if he does happen to come near you, we will pick it up on audio from you instantly. Any questions?"

Scully glanced down at the black mini skirt with long boots and her skimpy top. "Can I burn this when I'm done?"

Skinner gave her a slight smile. "Right there in the alley if you want. You ready?"

Scully nodded. "Let's do it." She started to head for the back door and stopped. "Oh and Sir, please do me a favor and assure Agent Mulder that I will be ok? He's quite worried."

"Consider it done." Skinner replied before opening the back door and helping Scully out of the van. He then made his way back over to Mulder who was watching a video monitor nervously showing Scully heading toward a street corner. "It's ok, Agent Mulder. She knows what she's doing. And she has a lot of back up out there. Remember she volunteered for this."

"Yeah, I know she did. I just wish I could have talked her out of it." Mulder muttered watching her walk up with the other prostitutes and striking a provocative standing pose. "Oh god please be careful."

Scully leaned against the wall of the crumbling building behind her while carefully surveying the area around her. "No sign." She whispered into her hidden mike.

"Sector 1 what's your report?" Skinner asked speaking into his headset.

"All clear from where I am." A voice crackled back.

"2 and 3?"

"Skies are clear." Another voice crackled back.

Skinner sighed as he stared at the video monitors. "Now we just wait."

"That's the part I hate." Mulder replied back as he kept his eyes glued on Scully's image.

An hour had passed and Scully had had to do her best to prevent from being a pick up along with the other prostitutes. Luckily she had managed to avoid that but she had to admit that she was starting to get a little bit nervous dodging men. How much longer could she keep it up before drawing suspicion?

Mulder let out a sigh from the van. "Sir, it's been an hour I don't think he's going to show."

"All of his victims were taken between the hours of midnight and one a.m. from this street corner on this date. He had five victims who fit that so why would this be any different?"

"I don't know Sir. Maybe he moved to a different street corner? Regardless I don't like Scully out there on that street corner by herself dodging men that drive by. No matter if she has protection around her or not."

"I guess, you're right. So much for setting this up." Skinner paused before speaking into his headset. "All right, people listen up. It appears that…"

Mulder glanced at one particular video screen and his eyes widened. "Sir, I think he just showed up."

"What?"

Mulder pointed to the video screen. "It's hard to tell completely from here but it looks like he fits that description to a tee. Guess he decided not to wear a full disguise this time."

Skinner nodded. "Sector 2, I need you to…"

A large and disruptive noise could then be heard in the background. The roaring appeared to get louder as the seconds passed.

"What the hell?"

Motorcycles could then be seen popping out of nowhere with riders carrying bats and guns. They started firing and driving toward the street corner. Soon the entire area echoed with the sound of screams and gunfire.

"Shit!" Skinner yelled into this headpiece. "Agents! Contain them! Repeat contain!"

"What about the suspect?" Mulder replied looking back at Skinner. "He's still out there! We need to get word to Scully and warn her!"

Skinner nodded. "Agent Scully it's Skinner! The suspect is heading in your direction! Repeat he is heading in your direction!"

Mulder watched the video screen. "She's not moving! I don't think she heard you!"

"Agent Scully! The suspect is coming toward you!Do you copy?"

Scully could hear static on her end but no clear words. She then looked up and saw the large swarm of motorcycles coming toward her along with the crowd running from them. She quickly ducked into an alley just as the entire area became completely covered with people.

Skinner watched as all the video monitors were completely covered by the chaos just down from the van. There was so much chaos going on it was hard to distinguish anything in particular. "It's impossible to see anything right now."

"Where's the suspect?" Mulder asked looking at the monitors with him.

"I…I don't know. We lost him."

Mulder watched as the agents moved in with full force and finally managed to subdue the biker gang and crowd. "Well, I would say this operation didn't exactly go as planned! Of all the times for a gang to want to start some…" He then glanced over at the monitor where Scully had been just moments before. He could see now that it was empty. "Where's…where's Scully?"

Skinner spoke into his headpiece. "Agent Scully?"

Scully took in deep breaths as she witnessed the scene of chaos from the alley. She couldn't believe how terribly wrong everything had gone. Her audio set had been receiving nothing but static and so she had turned it off. So much for modern technology. It was then that she felt a hand clasped over her mouth followed by a sharp prick on the side of her neck. It didn't take much for her to realize that it was a knife.

"Sssssh." Came a whisper from behind her. "Don't scream now or I'll have to cut your pretty throat right here."

Scully turned her eyes slightly and instantly recognized Jeremy. It was her worst fear come true.

Jeremy leaned into her ear. "Let's say you and I take a little walk, shall we?" He then started to drag Scully down the alley with a knife to her throat.


	2. Sweet Little Red

Inside the van, Skinner was doing his best to contain the riot situation that had developed outside. This was definitely something he had not planned on! It was bad enough to have Scully undercover out there but now to lose her with the suspect still out there somewhere? And he knew that Mulder was fit to be tied as well. "Don't worry, Agent Mulder. She just probably got lost in the shuffle down there. You saw what was happening out there."

"Oh yeah, I saw it all right." Mulder replied continuing to check the video screens of any sign of Scully.

"She probably ducked into someplace safe until the chaos cleared up."

"Yeah, maybe." Mulder leaned in closer to the video monitor, which was pointed at the last known place Scully had been seen. He then noticed what appeared to be a part of some kind of equipment on the ground. "Maybe not."

"What is it?"

Mulder pointed to the same object. "Looks like we know now why Scully couldn't hear us. Part of her ear piece is missing."

Skinner studied the object carefully. "You're right. But that earpiece was put in securely. There's no way it would just fall out unless…"

"Unless some kind of movement forced it out." Mulder finished.

Skinner nodded and then spoke into his headset. "All right, listen up. I have new orders for Agents in Section Two. I want you to head back toward the street corner now that the riot has mostly been contained. I want you to find Agent Scully who appears to have left the scene. Due to a malfunction in her ear piece, there is a slight possibility she may have been hurt in some way…"

* * *

Jeremy continued dragging Scully with him down the alleyway until he reached a door. "Ah, here we go." He leaned into her ear. "Now, we can have a little privacy." He then opened the door and pulled Scully in after him before closing it. He then dragged her down another hallway. "You know I have to admit that I didn't think I was going to be able to complete my task tonight. Those dreadful bikers had to come in and scatter the merchandise. The nerve!" He stopped in front of another door and began running his fingers through Scully's hair. "But then I had one little girl who was waiting just for me."

Scully closed her eyes and flinched at Jeremy's touch. She was starting to have a difficult time breathing due to Jeremy's other hand over her mouth. And because of that, was having a hard time concentrating on how to escape. This man definitely knew what he was doing.

Jeremy unlocked the door and then dragged Scully in with him again. He then closed and locked the door behind him. "Here we are, home sweet home."

Scully opened her eyes halfway and could see that they were in what appeared to be an apartment or a studio. It was hard for her to tell due to her mind starting to go cloudy from not getting enough oxygen to the brain. So this is where he had taken his victims to perform his terrible deeds? There hardly appeared to be any evidence of such a thing to indicate it. It looked just like a nice, cozy room.

As if he could read her mind, Jeremy then spoke. "Oh, no this isn't going to be where you will be staying, little Red." He pulled Scully with him toward the back. "I have a much nicer place for you."

The suffocation starting to take more of an effect, Scully started to cough and choke.

"What is it my little Red?" Jeremy asked taking his hand off her mouth enough for her to speak.

"Breathe. Can't….can't breathe." Scully whispered.

"Oh. Well I suppose we can remedy that now that we are alone." He placed the knife close to her throat again. "But remember one scream and it will be your last. I have sensitive ears."

Scully nodded slowly. She then felt Jeremy's hand completely off of her mouth and began to take in as much air as she could. She flinched as she felt the knife prick her skin from moving.

"Now, now be careful. We wouldn't want to see you get hurt now would we?" He pulled the knife away just enough where it wouldn't cut her while she recovered her breathing. "Better?"

"Ye…yes." Scully replied softly before coughing a few more times.

"Good." He started moving Scully toward the back again. "The last thing I would want is to have you unconscious for your revealing."

"Re…revealing?"

"Yes." He leaned into her again with the knife. "But I can't tell you what it is otherwise it will spoil the surprise."

"Please….please let me go."

"Awwww you said please. Isn't that nice? You are definitely much more polite than the other girls. They would always choose to either scream or kick me. That really didn't settle well with me and soon I had to teach them a lesson." He ran his hand slowly down her neck to her shoulders. "But I somehow feel that you're special. Are you my little Red?"

Scully shook her head trying to not feel Jeremy's hot breath on her neck.

"Well, I think you are. And soon we'll see." He unlocked another door before pulling Scully in after him and closing and locking it.

* * *

Mulder found himself pacing the van nervously as Agents continued checking the area for any sign of Scully. So far, the only thing that had been found was the part of her earpiece. He didn't like the feel of this at all. Even though only minutes had passed, it seemed like an eternity for him. "Something's wrong."

"We're doing everything we can to find her, Agent Mulder." Skinner replied listening to reports on his headset. "If she went to hide somewhere she could still…"

"No. She would have come out by now." Mulder pulled out his gun from his holster and checked the clip.

"Agent Mulder, what are you doing?"

"I'm going out there." Mulder replied putting the clip back in place and heading toward the door.

Skinner grabbed him by the shoulder. "Are you crazy?! You can't go out there! That riot still hasn't been completely contained yet!"

"Something happened to Scully out there dammit!" Mulder replied angrily turning to him. "No one can find any trace of her. The longer she is missing, the more chance that she's in danger. And I'm not going to let that happen! You want to stop me?Then shoot me! Otherwise get the hell out of my way!"

"You're making a huge mistake! Not to mention disobeying a direct order!"

"Then write my ass up! I don't give a shit! Do whatever you want AFTER I bring Scully back!" Without another word, Mulder opened the van door and ran out into the night.

"Agent Mulder!" Skinner yelled from the back door as he watched Mulder's figure consumed by the darkness. "Shit!" He groaned before hitting the side of the van. "That crazy son-of-a-bitch is going to get himself killed!" He then spoke back into his headset. "Find me Agent Scully, dammit!"

* * *

Jeremy guided Scully over to a bed across the room and sat her down. He then took the knife and ran it down her front slowly as he leaned into her ear. "So tell me, what's your name, little Red?"

"Da…Dana." Scully answered swallowing.

"Dana? That's a pretty name. I like that. You do know that you are named after a goddess right?"

Scully shook her head.

"Oh but you are. You're named after the goddess Danu. How fitting for one as beautiful as you." He brought the knife down to her mini skirt. "You are truly special now sweet, Dana."

"Please…please don't hurt me." Scully replied in a pleading voice as she trembled.

"Hurt you? Oh I wouldn't dream of hurting a goddess that was sent to me." He kept the knife on her as he ran his hand slowly under her skirt touching her leg and inching his way to her thigh. "Even your skin feels like a goddess'." He whispered. "Does this excite you?"

Scully shook her head trying not to think of Jeremy touching her in an area that no man had in years. And she cursed her body for responding through instinct. The feel of a hand on her thigh like this was sending shivers all through her.

"Oh, but I think it does." His hand wandered to the outside of her panties where he felt dampness. A smile then crept across his face. "You see? You can't lie to me, sweet, Dana. If there is one thing I can't tolerate it's when someone lies to me." His hand moved under her panties and brushed her soft pink lips.

Scully took in a deep breath as her entire body shook from his touch. She felt completely powerless with this man. It was like he knew exactly what to do to get her body to respond. She let out a gasp as she felt him insert a finger into her.

"Ooooo…so tight." Jeremy whispered. "I would have expected a whore to be much looser."

"I'm….I'm new." Scully whispered taking in another breath.

Jeremy leaned in to her face. "Then it is my lucky night." He gazed into her eyes for a moment before taking her lips in a passionate kiss. His finger then began to move in and out of her slowly.

Scully tried to cry out but was suffocated by Jeremy's powerful lips. She was trying desperately to remember everything she had been taught about when dealing with a situation like this. But Jeremy's touches were making it hard for her to concentrate. She finally managed to push Jeremy away from her lips.

Jeremy looked back at her smiling as she stopped moving his finger. "My you certainly are strong for a little whore aren't you?"

"I….I work out at times."

"I see. Well it isn't good practice to refuse a customer." He grabbed Scully by the face roughly and then noticed a single crystal earring dangling on her right ear. He reached out and touched it. "Hardly a choice for a whore. Was it a gift from one of your clients perhaps?"

Scully had forgotten that she was wearing the earrings that Mulder had given her for Christmas that year. "A…a client yes."

"He has good taste." Jeremy replied rubbing her cheek with his thumb as he kept his grip on her. "But don't be deceived by gifts, my sweet, Dana." He looked into her eyes. "It still makes you a whore and no man can truly love you. You are nothing but a good fuck and nothing more. Do you understand?"

Scully looked at him remaining silent.

Jeremy then took his knife and placed it on the side of her cheek. "I said, do you understand?"

Scully closed her eyes as she felt the knife on her tender skin. "Y…yes."

"Good. That's better." His hand moved down to her mini skirt again. "Now let me see why it is exactly that your client feels he needs to give you a nice pair of earrings for your services." His hand wandered to a pocket where he found a lump. "Hiding something from me sweet, Dana?"

It was then that Scully remembered she had placed her FBI ID in her pocket. She hadn't anticipated being that close for the suspect to see it. That is until she showed it to him just before arresting him. And now she was about to pay the ultimate price for not thinking things through correctly. Yet again something Mulder had been right about that she had chosen to ignore. "It's….it's just my wallet." She knew she had to divert his attention away from it somehow. If he found out she was an FBI Agent it would be over. She took a swallow before placing her hands on his thigh. "But….you don't need to see that do you? I think what's more important is what's right here." She tilted her head toward his face and moved to his lips.

Jeremy moved forward kissing Scully passionately. As he kissed her, his hand moved into her pocket where he pulled out the ID and let it fall to the floor. His eyes then opened and he saw the ID opened revealing her picture. His brow creased as he read it. He then pushed Scully away from him roughly. "FBI? You're a fucking FBI Agent?!"

Scully could sense the anger in Jeremy and knew that things were about to take a much worse turn. She had to think quickly. She lunged forward trying to wrestle the knife from Jeremy's hand. But Jeremy was too strong for her and she soon found herself succumbing to it. He brought her hand down roughly causing her to cry out in pain. She then felt the knife on her chest, as her top was ripped open exposing her bra.

Jeremy then saw the wire. "What the fuck?!" He ripped it off of her tossing it to the ground. "You lied to me! You fucking lied to me!" He then slapped Scully across the face as hard as he could sending her falling across the bed.

Scully reeled from the powerful slap and opened her eyes part way. She could literally feel the entire room spinning. She was then aware of Jeremy hovering over her once again with the knife.

"That was so stupid, sweet Dana! That was so fucking stupid!" He leaned into her with the knife pointed at her throat as a tear trickled down his cheek. "How could you do this sweet, Dana? You were a goddess! I told you not to lie to me and you did!" He paused. "And now….I'm going to have to teach you a lesson just like the others."

Scully closed her eyes as tears streamed down her cheeks. "Please…"

"Oh no, not this time my sweet, Dana." He moved to her ear. "Whisper softly sweet, Dana for if you scream your death will be much slower."


	3. Prepare Yourself My Sweet, Dana

Outside on the street corner, Mulder was still checking for any signs of Scully. He had already conferred with several other agents who stated they had not seen her either. And so far, the only evidence that had been found to show that she had even been there was her earpiece. As Mulder looked around at the chaotic scene still being cleaned up, he could see just how easily it would have been for the suspect to grab Scully and drag her off somewhere. And somehow he felt that is precisely what had happened. He knew Scully too well by now to think that she wouldn't have come out of her hiding place. Earpiece or not she would have communicated with them somehow.

"Agent Mulder?" Skinner crackled over his headset. "Any sign?"

"No, Sir. Just the earpiece found so far."

"Well, trust me we have that entire area being combed by agents as we speak. She'll be found."

"Sir, I'm sorry but I think I'm going to have to disagree with you."

"What do you mean?"

Mulder started walking a little into the alley just a few feet from where Scully had last been seen. "Because I think this is a matter of finding her before she is victim number six."

"We don't know that is the case yet, Agent Mulder."

"Don't we?" Mulder started examining the alley with his flashlight. "In that riot it would have been too easy for the killer to slip in and take her right under our noses. And at this point, she would have shown herself to us by now had she been hiding." His flashlight caught something shiny in the distance. "I say we start looking for Jeremy or any kind of suspicious activity." He started moving toward the reflective object.

"Agent Mulder, your specific orders were to say in this van in the first place!" Skinner replied angrily. "Your ass is already in deep shit as it is! I don't advise you to push it!"

As Mulder got closer, he could see that the object was something very tiny. He pulled out a latex glove from his pocket and bent down to examine it and his eyes widened as he instantly recognized it. There was no mistaking that it was one of the earrings that he had given Scully as a gift for her birthday. _Shit!_ Now he knew that his theory was right. For her to lose just one earring meant that it had been from excessive force of some kind. He then shined his flashlight on the pavement where he could clearly see two sets of footprints and indications that one of those people had been dragged. He swallowed hard. _Scully!_ He turned toward the front of the alley where he found two other agents. "Over here!"

"Agent Mulder? What's going on?" Skinner crackled back.

Mulder ignored Skinner, covering up his mouthpiece as the two agents walked up to him. "I've found indications that Agent Scully has been forcibly moved somewhere down this alley. I need to have you two split up and cover as much ground in this area as possible." Mulder started running and then turned back. "I'll check all the doors in this section while you check the rest!"

* * *

Scully moaned as she tried to move her body. She could feel pain all over her as she attempted to open her eyes. She attempted to move her hands but found them above her head. She pulled and discovered that she apparently was bound to the top of the bed. Focusing her eyes, she lifted her head slightly and could see that she was wearing nothing but a bra and panties. Fear instantly took over as she remembered the circumstances of what had happened earlier. _Jeremy!_ She looked around the room anxiously.

"Awake now my sweet Dana?"

She scanned the room but only found darkness. "Where are you?" She pulled on her binds. "Show yourself!"

Jeremy placed the knife in front of her. "Ssssh." The knife glinted as he placed it in front of her now terrified eyes. "Are you frightened my sweet, Dana?"

Scully took a swallow but was determined not to show her fear. "I'm…I'm not afraid of you!"

Jeremy placed the knife under her throat as he grasped her hair. He pulled her toward him. "You already lied to me once and you DARE do it again!"

Scully gasped as she felt herself yanked and put right in Jeremy's face. "What are you going to do to me?"

He looked back into Scully's eyes as he ran the knife down her chin. "That my sweet, Dana shall depend on you." His fingers fumbled on her earring once again. "So, tell me just who did give you these as a gift anyway? Your partner, perhaps?"

"What?"

His hand ran slowly down Scully's bare side. "Well, you are an FBI Agent and I know that they have partners. And since I see no wedding or engagement ring it's obvious that you are not attached. A boyfriend is a slight possibility although I somehow doubt it."

"Boy, you have me all figured out, don't you?" Scully asked sarcastically determined to keep her head.

Jeremy smiled as he brought his hand back up again to her chest. "Oh, I think I know you quite well, my sweet, Dana." He moved his hand under her bra and began to tease her nipple with his fingers. "So, tell me my sweet, Dana have you fucked your male partner?" Her nipples instantly hardened at his touch emitting a soft moan from him. "Has he touched you like this?"

Scully closed her eyes. "We…we don't have a relationship like that."

Jeremy moved his head to her ear. "But you thought of it didn't you?" He moved his hand up further cupping her breast and massaging it slowly. "You thought of what it would be like to sit on your couch in the middle of the night with him. Have him kiss you roughly and run his hands all over your body." He reached behind her back, unfastening her bra.

"I'm a federal agent." Scully whispered as she pulled on her restraints. "Touch me and they will make you pay."

Jeremy kissed her slowly down her chest, flickering his tongue across her skin. He then stopped at her loosened bra. "And then he takes your bra." He lifted up the bra exposing her pert breasts and nipples. "Perfect." He whispered. "And that's what he would say before he would lower himself and take a nipple in his mouth." He moved his lips to a nipple and began sucking it slowly.

Scully moved her head back and forth trying to shut out what was being done to her. Jeremy knew exactly what he was doing. His actions were exciting every inch of her body and there was nothing she could do. But now her anger was starting to build and she no longer wanted to feel like the helpless victim. "Don't touch me."

Jeremy pulled his lips away from her nipple and raised his head, making eye contact with her again. "Why can't you just be quiet and enjoy the experience for what it's worth?" He placed the knife under her chin again near her pulse point. "Answer me! I'm trying to make this as painless for you as I can, my sweet, Dana. And YOU are spoiling the mood for me!"

"You can go to hell." She replied looking back at him defiantly. The time for her trying to play along with him to prevent anything from happening was at its end. If she was going to go down, she wasn't going to without a fight. She had faced other psychos before Jeremy and he was no different.

"I was trying to fulfill your fantasy about your FBI partner and all you do is protest!" He took the knife scraping it across her skin painfully. He listened as she cried out in pain and watched as blood trickled down her once white skin. "Now, look what you made me do! You started pissing me off and this is what you get for it!"

Scully winced from the pain of the cuts from the knife. She knew she had been taking her chances in showing her anger but he had pushed her to it. She looked back into his cold eyes and uttered a word she never had in her entire life. "Fuck you." She replied bitterly before spitting in his face.

Jeremy pulled back from her and took his finger wiping the spittle off his face. He glanced at it as he worked it between his fingers. "Such terrible language coming from such a pristine female. Why oh why did you do that my sweet, Dana?" He then leaned into her again with his eyes full of fire. "You want to come across as the fighter and not the hapless victim. To show your true FBI side like they showed you in class, am I right? An FBI Agent must never show their fear. Well, you can play that card all you want my sweet, Dana." He took the knife and traced it down her body slowly. "But I know you are really afraid of me." He took the knife and cut the waistband of her panties leaving her completely exposed to him. He then leaned into her ear. "Oh and another thing my sweet, Dana. I love it when someone gives me a fight. It just excites me even more." He pushed himself against her. "Can't you feel how hard I am now my sweet, Dana? That is how much I desire you. And to be honest, I've never fucked an FBI Agent before."

"You nauseate me."

Jeremy grabbed her hair again forcefully pulling her to him. "Do I now? Is that because you are sickened by me or are excited about how much you want me to fuck you?" He moved up on the bed placing himself over her. "How much you want to…feel me inside of you, make you come as you never have before. Not even your FBI partner could make you come like I can my sweet, Dana." His hand wandered between her legs where he found wetness. "And I'll make you come again and again until you are begging for mercy."

Scully saw the opportunity she was waiting for with Jeremy distracted. She had weighing the situation before making her move and now that time was right. He did have her hands bound but not her legs. Using all of the strength she had in her, she pushed him off her. And then with one swift kick of her leg, caught him in the stomach. As he fell to the ground, she pulled desperately at her restraints determined to set herself free. She then turned her head to the side where she could see a window. "Help! Somebody help me!" She screamed as loud as she could.

* * *

Mulder had been searching room upon room as he explored all the doors in the long hallway that led from the back of the alley. He had tracked the two sets of footprints to that particular area. But so far ever door that he found led to nothing but an empty room. He was starting to lose hope of finding Scully anywhere. It was then that he had heard a faint scream coming from one particular end. It was hard for him to decipher completely but he was pretty sure it was a female voice. He took out his gun as he made his way toward the sound. _I'm coming, Scully!_

* * *

"No one will hear you my sweet, Dana." Jeremy replied as he slowly rose from the floor. He then picked up a rag from the floor and started to slowly walk toward her. "I told you that I didn't like screaming. I also told you that if you did that it would make your death much slower." He took the rag and made it taunt. "Just remember that you brought this on yourself my sweet, Dana." He took the rag and placed it in Scully's mouth as she struggled before tying it around the back of her neck. He pulled back and looked at her as he took off his underwear. "And to make certain we have no more heroics of yours." He hauled back his hand and hit Scully across the face as hard as he could.

Scully could feel the blood trickling from her mouth under the rag. Between the hard slap and the rag making it difficult for her to breathe, she had a hard time focusing. She could feel her spirit slowly being broken. Any strength she had left had been spent from her pushing him off earlier. Now she had nothing left. Jeremy had won and would claim his first FBI Agent. Now she would just be another statistic to his victim list. And she would never see her partner again to tell him he had been right about not doing this undercover operation in the first place. She regretted that most of all. She then felt a weight on her and realized that Jeremy was hovering above her with his erection pressed against her hip.

"Now prepare yourself my sweet, Dana." Jeremy whispered. "Because this is really going to hurt."

And now the last thing she would experience would be a man taking her forcefully. She would never have the chance of feeling another man's tender touch again. It was true she had often fantasized about that with her partner. She had secretly hoped that one day he would just take her in his arms and then make passionate love to her. But now none of that was to come true ever. She then let out a muffled scream as felt a terrible pain between her legs.

* * *

Mulder made his way to a particular door where he saw something on the floor. Bending down he picked it up and found it be a bottle of chloroform.

"Hardly a place to find something like this." He muttered to himself. Placing the bottle in his pocket, he put his ear to the door listening for any sound. He knocked on the door lightly with his gun ready. "Special delivery." Receiving no answer he knew he had a choice now. He could call for back up and wait for them to get there or he could go in himself. He spoke into his headset. "This is Special Agent Fox Mulder can anyone hear me?" The answer he received was static. He took another breath and tried again. "This is Special Agent Fox Mulder does anyone copy?" He let out a sigh as he received the same response. "Ok, so much for backup. Looks like its just little ole me now." He took a deep breath. _Think of Scully. Think of Scully. All right here we go. 1…2…..3! _He then kicked the door as hard as he could busting it open. He ran into the room with his gun pointed. "FBI!" He then started checking ever perimeter of the room for any sign of Jeremy or Scully.

* * *

As soon as Mulder had bust in the door, Jeremy had heard it quite clearly. He quickly removed himself from atop Scully. "Well, it would appear we have a visitor. Think perhaps it is your dashing partner here to save you?" He leaned into her face. "No matter, we can finish our little fun later." He picked up the knife once again and placed it to her throat just as the door in front of them came bursting open.

"Freeze FBI!" Mulder yelled pointing his gun at Jeremy. His heart ached as he saw Scully's bruised face and naked body with cuts. "Let her go!"

"Not so fast G-Man." Jeremy replied quite calmly with his knife still pressed to Scully's throat. "Drop the gun or you pretty partner here becomes victim number six."

"Not a chance." Mulder answered cocking his gun and taking a step closer.

Jeremy took the knife and ran it over Scully's neck cutting it slightly as she winced. "I'm not playing around G-Man! Now do it! I have no qualms about killing her whatsoever! Her life is entirely in your hands. So what will it be G-Man? Do you want to be the hero and save her? Or do you want to live with her death forever because of a stupid decision you made?" He placed the knife close to Scully's jugular. "I'm waiting, G-Man."


	4. Either Way I Win Agent Mulder

Inside the van, Skinner was pacing impatiently. No one was communicating to him and he was getting quite pissed. "Dammit, I want to know what the hell is going on out there!"

"Still no sign, Sir." A voice crackled back.

"Well, some one sure as hell better find something out there! We've got over a dozen of you out combing the area for Christ sakes! It's not so difficult to find one female FBI Agent is it?!" He took a breath. "And where the hell is Agent Mulder?"

"No one has seen me since he went down the alley, Sir."

"What alley?"

* * *

Mulder looked back at Jeremy with his hand shaking and the gun still pointed. He could see the blood trickling slowly down Scully's neck. He felt nauseated at what he was witnessing. Seeing Scully in this condition was his worse nightmare. It was even worse than the time he had rescued her from Donnie Pfaster. At least then he had the upper hand, not like this. He knew he could try and shoot Jeremy but then that would put Scully at risk as well. The knife was too close to her throat to take that chance. The last thing he wanted to live with was watching Scully getting her throat slashed because of a stupid decision he had made. Jeremy was right in that it would be an image to haunt him forever. "All right, all right. I'll put down my gun just don't hurt her." He slowly and reluctantly lowered his gun.

Jeremy kept the knife at Scully's throat. "Kick it over here." He noticed Mulder's hesitance and pushed the knife harder on Scully's skin causing her to take in a breath. "I'm not fucking around, G-Man."

Mulder bent down and lowered the gun.

"Carefully, carefully. The last thing we would want to do is make any quick movement and let sweet Dana have an accident."

Mulder slowly finished lowering the gun before kicking it over to Jeremy. "All right, now let her go!"

"Not so fast, G-Man." He reached over to an end table and threw Mulder some rope. "Tie yourself to that chair over there."

Mulder looked back at him. "Are you fucking crazy?"

"You want to see crazy G-Man?" Jeremy reached down and picked up the gun as he kept the knife steady on Scully. He then pointed it at Scully's temple. "Well, isn't this interesting? I can either shoot her or slit her throat. Or…I can shoot her and then slit her. Which do you think she would prefer?"

Mulder looked down at the rope before sitting himself in a chair. Taking the rope, he placed it around one of his hands and then intermingled it with the other. "This isn't easy to accomplish you know."

Jeremy moved away from Scully with the gun in his hand. "I just needed you to start it." He walked over to the chair with his gun pointed toward Scully. "One attempt at heroism and sweet Dana gets it right between the eyes."

Mulder remained completely still. As much as he wanted to move his hands and disarm Jeremy he knew the chance he was taking on misjudgment. One wrong calculation on where Jeremy's hands were and he would miss and Scully would be dead. As much as he hated, he would have to comply. Or at least he would for now. He felt Jeremy's hands as they took the rope and tightened it around his wrists. "Hey watch it will ya? I'm tender."

Jeremy finished his tying and went about checking his knots for security. "So, you're sweet Dana's FBI partner are you not?"

"What's it to you?"

Jeremy did a few more tightenings before moving back to the front of Mulder. "It's that sweet Dana was speaking so highly of you earlier. She was saying how much she wanted you to fuck her."

Mulder couldn't believe what he was hearing. That was certainly nothing he would expect to hear from Scully's lips. "You're lying." He replied glaring at Jeremy. "Scully would never say anything like that about me."

"Oh really?" Jeremy reached into Mulder's pocket and pulled out his FBI ID, flipping it open. "Agent Fox Mulder is it?" He leaned into Mulder. "And just why do you think that sweet Dana wouldn't say how much she wanted you to fuck her? Is it because you don't think anything like that could escape her sweet lips? Or is it perhaps that you are in denial that your partner would be interested in more than just a partnership with you?" He paused. "Or maybe you're saying that because you don't want to admit that you secretly want to fuck her as well?"

"Fuck you." Mulder replied haughtily at Jeremy.

"I think it's the third choice." Jeremy placed the gun on the ground before moving away from Mulder and heading back toward Scully. "So, tell me Agent Mulder, what exactly is your position in the FBI? I mean what division do you work for? Oh wait, wait let me guess….violent crimes right?"

"Boy, you're a regular chatterbox aren't ya?" Mulder asked as he started to pull on the rope that held his hands in back.

"You aren't one of those profilers are you?" Jeremy asked as he stroked Scully's hair. He let out a breath as he felt her tremble under his touch. It was obvious to him that he had finally broken that wild spirit of hers. He was kind of sad actually for he liked a challenge.

"Years ago I was yeah." Mulder answered as he continued to work on his ropes. He knew if he kept Jeremy distracted away from Scully, the more time he would have to try and set himself free.

Jeremy pointed the knife to the side. "I'm curious just what your profile would be of me."

Mulder took a breath. "Well, for one I would say you are a sociopath. You're intelligent, far from sloppy. You use your intellect to get what you want. You appear to be normal until that dark side of you takes over. And once it does, you become this…murderous, torturous being. You get off on the pain of others and that's why you do what you do to your victims. Their marks reflect what you feel inside. I'm guessing you were abused as a child? Beaten or perhaps sexually molested by your father or another family member? And….you choose prostitutes because they are convenient for you."

Jeremy crossed his arms. "Is that all?"

"I haven't had time to work up a clear profile on you yet but yes. That's what I've come up with so far."

"I'm quite impressed Agent Mulder. You actually flatter me with that wonderful, distinctive profile of myself. And I must tell you that you were correct up until a certain point." Jeremy moved his tongue slowly over Scully's face.

Mulder could feel his anger building but knew he had to try and keep his composure. "What part?"

Jeremy lifted his face from Scully and looked back at Mulder. "Oh but you see therein lies the fun. I tell you that you are right up to a certain part and you have to wonder just what that is. You…use your FBI educated background to figure out just what that part is." He undid Scully's left cuff. "I am quite impressed though, I must say. Oh and I must add also that there is an infamous serial killer named _Jack_ from England who happens to partly be my idol."

"That would also account for the prostitutes, specific dates as well as the number of victims."

Jeremy clapped his hands. "Bravo, Agent Mulder. Bravo. Appears your FBI background is beneficial after all. But you see whereas _Jack _was sloppy I have perfected with my five victims." He undid Scully's right cuff. "But sweet Dana here, victim number six, she will be different." He then grabbed Scully's hair roughly.

"What are you going to do to her?" Mulder asked continuing to work on his ropes.

"Well, I can certainly tell that the two of you are close. Although not THAT close. And to be honest, I've never had an audience before while I accomplished my tasks. I rather like it." He took the knife and placed it to Scully's throat. "What I am going to do is quite simple, Agent Mulder. I'm going to have my way with sweet Dana here right in front of your eyes."

Scully let out a muffled scream and began to breathe labored breaths from the rag that was still in her mouth. She then closed her eyes as she felt the knife on her neck again dangerously close.

Mulder felt his stomach clench. He wanted to reach forward and grab Jeremy strangling the life out of him. "She….she can't breathe with that rag on you know."

Jeremy looked back at Mulder. "Oh but you see I gave her the chance to go without it but she chose to scream. And if there is one thing I can't tolerate it's screaming. Not to mention she spit in my face. Can you believe that?" He placed his knife on Scully's lower lip. "She actually spit at me! I should just cut her tongue out for that!" He heard Scully's muffled protests and smiled as she tried to pull away. "Have you ever seen that Agent Mulder? Seen a person's tongue cut right out of their mouth? It's quite a sight to see." He could see the look of horror on Mulder's face and he loved it. He would have to remember having an audience like this next time. "But…" He pulled the knife away from Scully's lip. "If I do that then you won't be able to hear her screams as I violate and kill her will you? And that would certainly be no fun."

Mulder was determined to keep his sense of humor. Anything to keep Jeremy distracted from Scully while he continued to try and get his ropes off. "You know I have to admit this is the first time I've had a conversation with a killer buck naked. Have to definitely add that to my list of unusual encounters."

Jeremy looked at Mulder giving him a mere huff. "Being naked shows a human beings true self, Agent Mulder." He moved to the right side of Scully and took her breast in his hand. "She has such beautiful breasts, doesn't she? They are not large but not small either. Just the right size." He began to tease her nipple with his finger. "Wouldn't you like to take one in your mouth, Agent Mulder?" He lowered his head and took a nipple into his mouth, sucking it slowly.

Scully opened her eyes and looked back at Mulder as tears streamed down her face. Mulder felt completely helpless as he sat tied to his chair. He could sense Scully's fear and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. He looked back at her with a reassuringly look as best as he could. He then saw her wince and let out a muffled cry as he watched Jeremy bite down on her nipple. "You bastard!" Mulder screamed as he pulled on his ropes.

Jeremy licked the small amount of blood he had drawn from Scully's nipple. "Mmmm…she tastes delicious Agent Mulder." He then started kissing Scully slowly up and down her body alternating with his tongue. He lowered himself and began to tease Scully between her legs.

Mulder continued to pull on his chair and the ropes. He couldn't stand to see Scully violated like this. And the worse part was that he secretly wished he were the one kissing her like this and not Jeremy. And even though he could hear Scully letting out quick breaths, he knew that deep down inside she was not enjoying Jeremy's exploration of her.

Scully gasped as she felt Jeremy slowly lick over her pronounced bump and then suck it. This was not what she wanted. She could do nothing to control her body as her hips bucked and a pleasure began to course through her. She closed her eyes imagining it was Mulder doing this to her and not Jeremy. At least that way it wouldn't be as bad. She felt Jeremy suck on her harder and speed up his efforts as he pushed his finger into her. And then she came imagining that it was from Mulder's pleasure. Her body shuddered and then relaxed as she tried to catch her breath.

Mulder had watched Scully's facial expressions as Jeremy had pleased her. She looked so beautiful to him and seeing her face contorted with pleasure made it even more so. For that brief moment, he had forgotten that Jeremy was in the room. All he had centered on was Scully and watching her come. He then saw Jeremy lift his face from between Scully's legs and that image was shattered.

Jeremy looked back at Mulder. "I made her come Agent Mulder. I gave her pleasure before you did. Did you enjoy it? Did you watch her face as I pleased her and finger fucked her?" He leaned into Scully. "And I know you enjoyed that my sweet Dana." He whispered as he put the knife close to her face. "I felt you come and tasted it from you." He then pulled her up to him roughly. "And now it's time to return the favor. Get on your hands and knees." He watched as Scully shook her head. He sighed and brought the knife up to her chin. "Get on your hands and knees my sweet Dana before I gut you like a pig in front of your partner."

Scully started to cry as she slowly got on her hands and knees. She then felt Jeremy untie the rag in her mouth allowing her to breathe. She let out a wheezing sound as she took in slow, deep breaths before letting out a cough. She then saw Jeremy's erection presented to her.

Mulder's eyes widened, as he knew what was on Jeremy's agenda. "Scully! You son-of-a-bitch! Leave her alone!" He yelled as he pulled desperately on his restraints.

Jeremy looked down at Scully and smiled. "I believe you know what is required of you."

Scully shook her head. This went against everything she stood for. Catholic schoolgirls were raised to never commit such a sin as this. To orally please a man was unthinkable. "Pl…..please." She whispered.

"Wrong answer." Jeremy replied before slapping her across the face roughly. He then grabbed her hair bringing her to him. "What are you going to do give me the ole Catholic schoolgirl routine? About how it's wrong to give a man a blow job? I don't think so!" He brought the knife to her face. "I want you to suck my cock like a whore. Do you understand?"

Scully nodded her head slowly. She wanted to fight back but Jeremy's beatings had taken its toll on her. Not to mention her body ached from his rough penetration earlier. She felt like dying. Now she just wanted it to be over. But being humiliated in front of Mulder made it twice as bad. She secretly wished that Jeremy would just take the knife and slit her throat. But each time she saw Mulder's eyes looking at her trying to calm her she couldn't give up hope. Something told her that it wouldn't be long before the other FBI Agents showed up. Or at least she had to keep hoping that. She then felt Jeremy push her head down till she was across from his distinguished member again.

"Now, suck." Jeremy commanded.

Mulder was glad that Jeremy's back was to him. That way he could communicate facially with Scully while he continued to work on his ropes. He looked at Scully and mouthed. _It's ok. I'm almost free._ As terrible as it was if Scully continued distracting Jeremy he would have a better chance to escape. It was a small sacrifice compared to Scully's eventual rape and murder. There was no way in hell he was going to let it get that far.

"I said SUCK!" Jeremy growled as he pulled Scully's hair painfully.

Tears falling down her face and shaking Scully reached forward opening her mouth, taking in Jeremy's tip. She then started to suck it slowly.

"Oh yeah." Jeremy moaned as he bucked his hips. "That feels good, sweet Dana. Suck it like a little Catholic schoolgirl." He pushed himself more toward her as she continued to suck him.

Mulder had one of his hands almost free when he heard a noise in the background. It didn't take him long to realize that it was the rushing in of several footsteps. It was obvious that the FBI Agents had finally caught up to him. He had to act and quickly and just hope that Jeremy hadn't heard it.

But Jeremy had. "What the fuck was that?"

Jeremy's distraction was all Scully needed. She went from using her tongue to using her teeth as she bit down on his member as hard as she could. She was no longer the victim again. Being told to orally please Jeremy had affected her in more ways than one. Now she was releasing what little part of anger she could muster. She could taste the blood as she sank her teeth deep into him.

"Shit!Fuck!" Jeremy cried out as he felt Scully's teeth. Taking a deep breath, he pushed back his pain long enough to pull Scully from his crotch. But not before she had taken her bit of flesh. He picked up the knife as he slapped her across the face sprawling her across the bed. He looked back at Scully as he shook trying to shut out the pain he was feeling. He hovered above her with the knife. "And now my sweet Dana. You die!" He then stabbed her in the stomach.

"No!" Mulder cried out as he watched the terrible scene in front of him. He could see the blood pouring from Scully and staining the once white sheets. He pulled on his ropes and finally managed to get his one hand free. He tried to reach for the gun by his chair but found it too far away. "Shit!" He watched in horror as Jeremy positioned himself with the knife by Scully's neck.

"Say bye bye to your partner." Jeremy hissed at Mulder.

It was then that the FBI Agents finally reached the room and kicked down the door. Scully kicked Jeremy as hard as she could away from her but not before the knife had cut her throat. She then fell from the bed onto the hard ground.

As the Agents burst into the room with guns pointed, Mulder finally managed to free his other hand and quickly grabbed the gun that was in his ankle holster. He pointed it at Jeremy as he slowly stood. "One move and I blow your fucking head off!"

Jeremy looked back at Mulder with an evil smile. "You think this is it, Agent Mulder? Oh no, not even by a long shot. And it's so easy to act all big and bad when you have some agents to back you up, isn't it?"

Mulder turned toward the FBI Agents who were right behind him. "Back off! I've got the suspect now get some medical attention here now!" He noticed the agents refusing to move and turned his gun on them. "I said do it now!" He watched as the two agents exited and then turned his gun back to Jeremy. "Well, looks like it's just you and me now you sick fuck." He moved closer to Jeremy. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't blow your head off!"

"Will this capture get you that promotion you've been wanting Agent Mulder? Will it…get you that nice plaque on the wall? Or perhaps it will put you on _America's Most Wanted_ as the FBI Agent who took down the hooker killer? Hmmm?"

"Shut up!" Mulder yelled back at him.

"They won't want me dead, you know that right? This is America where everyone gets a fair trial. And besides, they're going to want to know what makes me tick. What makes me….do the terrible things I have. But then again you already have that figured out don't you, Agent Mulder? And then even if I am convicted I'll just sit in a cell and enjoy cable television and college educations."

"I said shut up!"

"And even if you do kill me, Agent Mulder it won't be the end. Oh far from it. Not to mention that you would be a murderer. That's right, Agent Mulder. You would be put on trial for murdering me without just cause. And not just that but for the death of your partner as well. That's right, Agent Mulder. The more we stand here and chat, the more the life-force from sweet Dana drains from her body. And so you would be responsible for two deaths." He gave Mulder a wicked grin. "And that's how I win either way. In life you will have to live with the fact that I killed your partner while I spend my time in prison. And in death you will have to live with the fact that you killed me and are a murderer. So please make your choice, Agent Mulder."

Mulder cocked his gun. "I made that choice the minute I stepped through that door and saw you with that knife to her throat. See you in hell." He then pulled the trigger shooting Jeremy in the chest just as Skinner burst in. He watched as Jeremy tumbled to the ground with blood streaming from his chest. He then quickly made his way over to Scully and cradled her. "Scully?" He looked down and saw her white face, which remained motionless. He then saw the pool of blood below her. "Oh god, Scully!" He looked toward Skinner. "Get the medical team in here STAT! Agent down!" He grabbed the sheet off the bed and wrapped her in it as he caressed her hair. "It's ok, Scully." He whispered. "Everything…..everything's going to be ok."


	5. He Deserves to Die!

Mulder continued to cradle Scully's motionless body in his arms. He grabbed a sheet and ripped some of it off, applying pressure to her stomach wound. He sadly knew all too well about stomach wounds and unless they were treated quickly, they were always fatal. "Come on Scully, hold on for me." He whispered. "Where the hell are those damn medics?!" He shouted toward the door.

Within a few seconds two medics came into the room with a stretcher. "What happened?"

"She's…she's been stabbed in the stomach." Mulder whispered. "And has several cuts across her neck."

The medic reached down to Scully's neck. "No pulse! Get ready to charge!"

The other medic ran into the other room and quickly returned with a defibulator. "Charged."

The medic near Scully picked up the paddles. "Clear!" He then placed them on Scully's chest, shocking her.

The other medic looked at the screen and shook his head. "Nothing."

"Ok, going again." The medic near Scully picked up the paddles again. "Charge." He then paused. "Clear!"

Mulder could only watch from the corner as Scully's chest rose and then fell. He couldn't believe this was actually happening. This was the kind of thing that only happened in movies not in real life. And he honestly didn't know how he would be able to get on without his partner.

"We've got a pulse!" The medic shouted. "Faint but it's there."

"All right, let's get her up on the stretcher!" The two medics got on each side of Scully. "Ready, 1…2…3!" They placed her wrapped body on the stretcher and went about starting an IV and oxygen.

It was then that Skinner walked back into the room. "Agent Mulder, I need to speak with you."

Mulder completely ignored Skinner as he watched Scully being wheeled out of the room. He ran after the medics. "I…I need to ride with her."

"Sir, I'm afraid you can't do that."

"Look, she's my partner, dammit!"

"Regardless you will have to just see her at the hospital." A medic answered back sternly.

Mulder watched as Scully was wheeled out the door. "Scully!" He was about to run when he felt himself put into a neck restraint.

"Don't even think about it, Agent Mulder!" Skinner replied angrily. "There's nothing more you can do for her now. I said I wanted to speak to you and I mean NOW!"

Mulder struggled for a few seconds before realizing he was losing this battle. "All right, all right."

Skinner let go of his restraint on Mulder and walked back to the bedroom. He watched as two other medics picked up Jeremy's body and placed it on a stretcher. "Now, I want to know what the hell happened, Agent Mulder."

Mulder watched as Jeremy's body was hooked up to an IV. "He's still alive?"

A medic looked at Mulder. "Just barely."

"That son-of-a-bitch should be dead!" Mulder screamed toward the stretcher.

"Agent Mulder, that's enough!" Skinner replied back.

"He deserves to die!" Mulder yelled as Jeremy was wheeled out of the bedroom. "He doesn't deserve to live!"

"I said, that's ENOUGH!" Skinner answered angrily. "Knock it off or I will have you put in restraints do you understand me?!"

"You can't do that!"

"I can and I will. Your behavior is completely irrational! And considering the circumstances you are under right now I don't think it would help your case!"

"What do you mean?"

"You went into this area completely unauthorized. You did not call for back up and instead committed breaking and entering, running in like some kind of damn cowboy! Not only that but you put your life as well as Agent Scully's in danger! And on top of that you shot the suspect when he was unarmed in cold blood! Now, you tell me why restraining you would not help your case?"

Mulder ran his hands through his hair. "You have absolutely no clue as to what happened in here, Sir! You weren't here! You didn't see…" He shook his head. "Look, I will tell you what I need to know but I want to see Scully first. You at least owe me that much. And after that, I will tell you everything you need to know and you can deal with me however you need. But I need to see her."

Skinner sighed. "All right. I'll take you to the hospital. But after you see her, I want some damn answers."

* * *

Mulder had to restrain himself from running into the hospital. All he could see in his mind was Scully lying in his arms with blood pouring from her. Her face had been so pale and cold to his touch. And now to make things worse her perpetrator was still alive! Mulder was cursing himself for not having a more fatal shot now. Murder or not that man did not deserve to live. He didn't care about what Skinner thought.

"Wait here. I'll find out where she is." Skinner replied before heading to the front desk.

Mulder stood in the waiting room, glancing toward the double doors. It pained him to no end to know that his partner was somewhere behind those doors fighting for her life. And worse yet that he couldn't be by her side. He watched as Skinner made his way back to him.

"They have her stabilized but barely. She's lost a lot of blood."

"Where is she?" Mulder whispered.

"They're preparing her for surgery, you can't see her."

Mulder turned to Skinner. "Like hell, I can't." Without another word, he went through the double doors.

"Sir, you can't go in there!" A nurse yelled but her words fell on deaf ears.

Mulder ran down the hallway, peeking into all the windows. His eyes desperately searched for a glimpse of his partner. He could feel his heart racing as he looked in window after window. He then stopped in front of a particular one and his heart sank. There lying on a bed with tubes and various things hooked up all around her lay Scully. "Scully." He whispered. The sight of her lying there caused him to shiver and go numb. He slowly sank to his knees with his fingers running down the pane of glass. "Oh god, Scully." He put his face in his hands emitting a soft cry. He was then grabbed roughly by the shoulder and yanked off the floor.

"You need to stop this, Agent Mulder. I already told you there is nothing more you can do for her. Don't make this any harder on yourself." Skinner replied turning him around. "Now, I kept my promise to you, it's time you kept mine. If you want to help her, you will tell me what the hell happened in there."

Mulder nodded. "All right."

Skinner led them to a door, which contained a small room. He motioned to a chair. "Take a seat."

Mulder slowly sat in the chair and clasped his hands together.

Skinner looked toward him. "Now, I want you to tell me what happened in there."

Mulder stared straight ahead as he spoke. "What happened? I…was a witness to a crime that is unspeakable. That tops any kind of profiling case I have ever done." He took a swallow." I looked into the face of pure evil. I stared into its horrible face and for one of the few times in my life, I felt fear."

"Fear?"

"Yes, I felt fear but not for myself. I felt fear knowing that this thing was going to take Scully away from me and there was nothing I could do." He paused. "For the first time in my life, I was completely helpless and at the mercy of someone else's will."

"Can you tell me what happened?"

"I found an earring that I gave Scully as a Christmas gift this year in the alley. And I knew based on that and her missing earpiece that more than likely she had been nabbed by our suspect. I contacted a few agents nearby and we split up hoping to cover more ground."

"So another words you went off on your own with no indication as to where you were heading?"

"Yes, Sir I did. But it was only because I was concerned for what might be happening to Scully. At this point, the suspect had a lot of time ahead of us."

"So, you found his lair?"

"Oh, I found it all right. I found a bottle of chloroform in front of the door and my instinct said that was where she was." He paused taking a breath. "So, I kicked the door in and made my way inside to the back room. I opened the door…and I saw…I saw Scully with a bruised and bloody face with a knife to her neck. And I saw that bastard grinning and laughing at me."

"And you didn't try and shoot him then?"

"How could I? He had the knife so close to Scully's throat, he would have slit her by the time I did. And that was the last thing I would have wanted to happen." He paused. "So, I gave up my gun to him and he tied me to a chair. He…taunted me saying how Scully had talked about me in a sexual way but I didn't believe him. And he asked me for a profile once he found out I had been a profiler, so I gave it to him. And it appears I hit on every single thing about him except for one thing that he wouldn't tell me. He said that Jack the Ripper was his idol."

"Based on the murders that would make sense." Skinner paused. "What happened after that?"

"After that?" Mulder fidgeted with his hands. "He told me…he was going to rape Scully right in front of me."

Skinner took a seat next to Mulder. "Oh god."

"He had her handcuffed to the bed and she was gagged. And…all she could do was look back at me with tears in her eyes and there wasn't a damn thing I could do." Mulder closed his eyes tightly. "He…started fondling her, kissing her right in front of me and he gloated in it. The son-of-a-bitch enjoyed seeing my pain. And then….he uncuffed Scully and took off her gag and threatened to kill her if she didn't orally please him."

Skinner folded his hands and sighed.

"So, she started to and that's when the other agents showed up. Scully…bit him while he was distracted and he…stabbed her in the stomach before sending her to the floor. And all that time I was loosening my ropes and just as they came in I got free. I pulled out my gun from my ankle holster and I pointed it at him. I just wanted to shoot his ass right then and there but I stopped myself. And yes I did send the other agents away and that was probably wrong. But after what I had just witnessed I couldn't let them just take away that sick bastard. He taunted me about how if I killed him I would be a murderer and that if I didn't he would live while Scully would die. And I just couldn't take it anymore so I shot him. I shot him without any remorse whatsoever."

Skinner rose from his chair and walked over to a corner. "Jesus."

"Sir, I know you think what I did was wrong in shooting him. That doing that was against everything we stand for. But what that man did to Scully and to all those other innocent victims of his…" He paused. "The only justice that would be good for that bastard is death. But even then I wouldn't want it to be a quick one either. I would want to see that son-of-a-bitch suffer. Death would be too kind for him."

Skinner adjusted his glasses. "Agent Mulder, you do realize the position you have put me in here, don't you?"

"Position, Sir?"

"I walked in and witnessed you killing Jeremy in cold blood. You also went against my authority in choosing to go after Agent Scully. And when you were at the crime scene you refused to wait for back up. In reality I should go before OPR with this and bring you up on charges."

Mulder lowered his head and nodded.

Skinner looked at him intently before speaking again. "But I'm not going to do that."

Mulder raised his head. "You're….you're not?"

"Based on what you just told me, no. I honestly cannot blame you for your actions, Agent Mulder. No one should have to go through what you did. You were justified in shooting him. And you were a lot kinder than I would have been."

"Thank you, Sir."

"But there is one small problem. There were other witnesses besides myself. And I can assure you they will not lie to OPR when called upon. I'm afraid there is nothing I can do on that issue."

Mulder sighed. "I understand, Sir."

"But…there is something else I can do for you."

"Something else?"

Skinner nodded. "I know where they are keeping Jeremy."

Mulder looked at him. "Where? Is he here in this hospital?"

"They told me over my cell where they were taking him. And I also got that information at the nurse's station."

"I need to know, Sir."

"I know you do." Skinner pulled out a piece of paper and wrote on it with a pen. He then handed it to Mulder. "As far as you know this information never reached you. He's on life support as we speak."

"Not for long." Mulder answered taking the piece of paper. "Are there any guards or anything by his door?"

"I'll take care of it. Just make certain that you are quick and leave no trace of fingerprints."

"I will and thank you, Sir."

"We never discussed this, understand?"

"Discussed what?" Mulder asked with a half smile.

"Get going before they have a chance to save him."

Mulder nodded and headed out the door with the piece of paper in his hand. "You're about to get some company, Jeremy. And this time no one will save your sorry ass!"

* * *

Mulder made his way to the floor that Jeremy was being kept on. He watched as the two agents near his room answered their cells and then walked away. It was obvious that Skinner had kept his promise. He stood around the corner and waited as the two agents walked by. Ducking into a closet he found a doctor's gown and mask. After donning his outfit he slowly approached Jeremy's room. Opening the door he stepped in and observed Jeremy's chest moving up and down due to the machine on the right. A smile crossed his face as he walked over to the bed. He then looked at Jeremy whose eyes were half closed. He pulled down his mask. "Hello, Jeremy. Long time no see." 


	6. Evil Never Truly Dies, Agent Mulder

Jeremy gave a slight smirk. "Agent Mulder." He replied in a weak voice. "I must say I am quite surprised to see you. Then again, under the circumstances, I can say part of me isn't. How is sweet, Dana?"

"Never mind about her." Mulder replied as he began to strap down Jeremy's hands with the bindings on the bed. He then looked back at him. "You have no idea how great it is to see you helpless like this. The only thing I wish I had was a knife so I could make you feel the fear that Scully felt and her pain."

"And you feel that would solve everything, Agent Mulder?"

"It would for me seeing as I didn't kill you." He walked over to the other side of Jeremy's bed. "You thought you were so clever in handling that situation, didn't you? Tying me up to the chair and taunting me with what you were doing to Scully. And yet you forgot to frisk me before tying me up. Had you done that, you would have found the gun in my ankle holster and prevented me from shooting you. So, I guess you aren't the smart serial killer you thought you were."

"Perhaps, I let you keep your gun to add more to the game. To give you a chance even though the stakes were high that you would lose. Give you that…last glimmer of hope that you could possibly save her. That…is the greatest game of all, Agent Mulder."

"But I did save her."

"Did you?" Jeremy asked looking back at him. "You may have saved her physically but how about mentally?"

"What do you mean?"

"I may not have claimed her life but I did her soul. She belongs to me now."

Mulder grabbed him by the collar roughly. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"You see, when I kill my victims, I take their life. But in sweet, Dana's case I have her soul. She will be forever haunted about what I did to her. There will be scars that she can never erase. Whenever she closes her eyes, she will see me. And in her dreams I will call her to me. I own her forever, Agent Mulder."

"You sick, bastard. You will NEVER bother her again. I will see to it."

"And how will you do that, Agent Mulder?"

Mulder walked over to Jeremy's machine. "By making sure you never see the light of day again and die like you should have in the first place."

"You really think that killing me will solve everything, Agent Mulder?"

"By killing you, I prevent the chance that you are ever released in prison or are able to get off on a plead of insanity charge. And it also means that if Scully dies, she didn't die in vain."

"Ah, so there is the chance that she may die? I must say that she was the strongest of all my victims. And that was why I enjoyed her so much. She gave me a challenge that no one ever had before. And knowing that I fucked her before you made it all the more sweeter."

"You didn't fuck her."

"How do you know, Agent Mulder? How do you know what happened in that room before you arrived? You could see that we were both naked, could you not?" Jeremy paused taking in a breath. "She felt so wonderful when I entered her and I could feel her pain. She was so tight and ready to be taken."

"Shut up."

"She screamed under her gag as I moved on top of her. And I moaned as I thrust into her. She really does like it rough, you know."

"I said shut up!" Mulder yelled before placing his finger over the button of the machine.

"Do you really think by killing me that it will be the end, Agent Mulder? Oh no, as I told you before it would just be the beginning. I told you that I own sweet, Dana forever. And if you kill me, I will own you too. Evil never truly dies, Agent Mulder. And good cannot exist without it. Kill me and I shall haunt you and sweet, Dana for as long as you both live. And when that happens, you will wish that you allowed me to kill the both of you when I had the chance."

"Where you are going, you will NEVER come back you sorry son-of-a-bitch!" Mulder then pushed the button on the machine. He watched as Jeremy writhed for a few minutes and gasped for air. He turned off the alarm on the vitals machine as he watched Jeremy then become still and go straight line. "Rest in hell." He whispered before donning on his doctor's mask again. He then quickly made his way out of Jeremy's room and walked down the hallway. Finding an unlocked closet, he ducked inside and took off his doctor's garb. He then leaned against the wall breathing heavily. "It's done." He whispered. "It's done, Scully."

* * *

As he sat in the waiting room, Mulder sat with his head in his hands. He should have felt good after killing Jeremy. So why didn't he? Why did he feel no relief? He remembered what he had been told in the past about when you killed someone that it didn't make the pain go away but just made it worse and sometimes grow. Is that what he was feeling now?

A doctor then walked up to him. "Mr. Mulder?"

Mulder rose from his seat. "Yes? How is she?"

"Miss Scully is recuperating and in critical condition. I'm afraid she has lost a great deal of blood."

Mulder closed his eyes. "Oh god. Do you have…any idea what could…"

"I'm afraid all we can do is wait." The doctor answered. "The wounds she sustained were almost fatal. And…even if she should recover it will take her a long time to get back to her normal state. I'm sorry, Mr. Mulder."

Mulder nodded. He then paused before asking the question that had been haunting him since his talk with Jeremy. "Doctor, can you tell me.." He swallowed. "Was there….any indication that she was raped?"

"When she was brought here and examined there were indications of vaginal tearing, yes."

Mulder clenched his fists tightly. "That son-of-a-bitch." He whispered. He then looked back at the doctor. "Can I see her?"

"She…isn't awake now and is quite weak. But..I guess it wouldn't hurt for you to see her a few minutes. She is in intensive care Room 618. But you must be brief."

"I will. Thank you, doctor."

The doctor nodded before walking away.

So it was true? Jeremy had actually raped her? Now he wished he had killed him slowly instead of just pushing a button. Mulder knew enough about what rape victims suffered. This would not be something that Scully would not be able to get over quickly. And Jeremy was right, based on this he would haunt Scully for god knows how long.

As Mulder made his way to the elevator, he felt torn inside. It was true he had stopped a serial killer but at what price? He remembered what Scully had suffered at the hands of Donnie Pfaster. It was an experience she had never truly gotten over. But what Jeremy had put her through was much worse. He knew this could take years for her to work through. But he vowed that he would stay by her side and help her no matter what. Scully had always been there for him and now it was his turn to return the favor. He would take off work if he needed, whatever it took to help his partner.

He walked off the elevator and started toward the intensive care area where he stopped in front of a phone.He picked it up."Yes, I need to see Dana Scully in room 618. I'm Fox Mulder, her FBI partner. Yes, thank you." He hung up the phone and opened the double doors upon hearing a buzzing sound. He looked up at the numbers and followed the ones leading to Scully's room. How many times had he seen Scully in a hospital? He had seen her dying of cancer in a room similar to the one she was in now. But this time for some reason he felt responsible for her condition now. He never should have let her do the undercover operation alone. He should have been more insistent that she not do it. And he hadn't trulytold her that he had a bad feeling about it as well. He now knew to trust his instincts. He took a deep breath and then entered her room quietly.

Lying on a bed Scully had the same amount of tubes and equipment hooked up to her as when Mulder had first seen her when she had been admitted. She almost looked like Jeremy when he had been on life support. He could see the scarring on her throat and face from where Jeremy's knife had cut her. Her beautiful face was now marked.

Mulder fell to his knees beside the bed as he gazed at her. "Oh god, Scully. What have I done?" he whispered. He took her hand as he trembled. "I never should have let you go alone, Scully. I should have told you the feeling I had but I was afraid you wouldn't believe me. That you would just accuse me of being too paranoid. You and your damn scientific beliefs." He gave a chuckle. "But I promise when you come out of this that I won't tease you about that anymore. I promise…to tell you everything that I feel. And I'm not going to let anything happen to you again. I'm not leaving your side, Scully and I'm not going to let you die on me either. We have way too much to resolve for you to leave me now, do you hear me?" He felt tears trickling down his cheeks. "I….I killed him, Scully. I killed him so that he can't hurt you anymore. And no one….will ever hurt you again, I promise." He laid hid face on her hand, much like he did when she had been dying of cancer. "Please don't leave me, Scully." He whispered. "Oh god, please don't. My life would be so lonely without you." He then felt his face being caressed slowly and gently. He opened his eyes. "Scully?" He lifted his head and looked at the bed.

"Mul…Mulder." Scully whispered weakly.

"Hey." Mulder replied with a smile as he wiped the tears from his cheek.

"Is…is he really dead?"

Mulder nodded. "He is. I killed him, Scully."

"Oh god, Mulder. Why did you do that? If you're caught…"

"I don't care what happens to me, Scully. A man like that didn't deserve to live. You're free from him now." He squeezed her hand reassuringly.

Scully shook her head. "Don't you know that's what he wanted, Mulder?"

"What…what do you mean?" Mulder asked with a confused look on his face.

"You played right into his game."

"His game? Scully, his game is over. He's dead."

"No, it isn't." Scully then began rasping.

"Scully?" Mulder asked as he touched her cheek. "What's wrong? Can you breathe?"

Scully only answered with another rasping sound as her body shook uncontrollably.

"Oh god!" Mulder ran to the door and opened it. "Help! I need some help in here!"

A nurse then came running into the room. "What happened?"

"She…she just started choking and…"

The nurse checked Scully's pulse and then looked at another nurse in the room. "We need a crash cart now!" She looked at Mulder. "Sir, I need you to leave now."

Mulder could only stare at Scully as she continued to convulse and turn pale.

"Sir, I need you to leave now!" The nurse repeated.

Mulder backed up slowly to the door watching as people surrounded Scully and went about working on her. He stepped into the hallway and the door was closed in front of him. He was witnessing everything he had witnessed when the paramedics had come upon her in Jeremy's room. He didn't know how much more of this he could take. And what did Scully mean about him playing Jeremy's game and it not being over? He then felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Agent Mulder, I need you to come with me." Skinner replied in a firm tone.

"Sir, I can't leave her."

"I'm afraid you have no choice."

Mulder turned to him. "What…what do you mean?"

Skinner sighed. "You are hereby ordered to be detained until questioned by OPR tomorrow."

"What?"

"I'm sorry, Agent Mulder. Really I am."

Mulder leaned into Skinner. "Is it about Jeremy? Do they know what I did with his life support?"

"No. They ruled that as a natural cause from his injuries. What you are being questioned about is your procedure in this operation as well as the shooting of Jeremy. So, I've been ordered to take you to a facility where you are to remain until your hearing tomorrow."

"Will you….let me know how she is?"

"After your hearing, yes. If you don't mind me saying so, Agent Mulder now is not the time to push your luck with OPR. Regardless of Agent Scully's condition they will not be as understanding about this situation as I am."

Mulder nodded. "Yes, Sir. I understand."

Skinner pulled out his handcuffs. "I'm sorry it's part of procedure."

Mulder put his hands behind his back and let Skinner cuff him. He briefly heard Skinner's words as he was placed under arrest in the shooting of Jeremy. As he was lead away, his thoughts were on Scully and what was happening in her hospital room right now. If she ended up dying, then everything he had done would be in vain.

* * *

NOTE: Sorry it took so long for me to get this chapter up but I just moved and had no internet access! I will try and get another chapter done to make up for it!Also the whole OPR situation I am not 100 sure on accuracy so please keep that in mind when reading this thank you! 


	7. Mulder Receives His Sentence

Mulder had been sitting on the cold floor of a cell for hours. He could have sat on the tiny bench provided for him but he refused. At this point, he wanted to have no comfort for himself until he knew Scully's condition. He could still see her lying on the hospital bed with medical personnel all around her struggling to stabilize her. If Scully died, he truly didn't know what he would do. Without Scully by his side, he knew he couldn't go on investigating the X-Files on his own and a new partner was completely out of the question. If she died, his entire lookout on life would go with it. He had grown so close to her over the past year. He had almost kissed her in the hallway of his apartment a year ago and now that she was in the hospital near death, he wished he had. She had changed him so much and in ways that others wouldn't understand. He had contemplated a romantic relationship with her but had been too afraid to risk their friendship. And now there was the possibility that he would never know if she would have agreed to it or not. But that wasn't what bothered him the most. It was the fact that he would be losing his best friend.

_God Scully_

He placed his head between his legs and let out a soft whimper. He had lost so many people close to him over the years and now his partner was going to be added to the list. She was going to die because of him. Boy this was all her brother Bill needed to get wind of. He had already blamed him for her getting cancer and with this he would have a field day. He would be forever shunned from the Scully family and most likely from the FBI. An FBI agent was definitely not popular when they were responsible for the death of their own partner. He raised his head as Skinner opened the door. "How is she?"

"She's been stabilized but is in critical condition." He paused. "She's…gone into a coma."

Mulder closed his eyes and shook his head. "Oh god." He folded his hands. "What about Jeremy?"

"As I told you, his death was ruled as accidental due to his injuries. And right now, I would advise you not to speak on that issue again unless you want them to find out about your assistance in that."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean where you are now, Agent Mulder the walls have ears. And the only one who is on your side here is me. Don't give them any more firepower than they already have."

Mulder looked straight ahead. "They're going to try and pin this whole thing on me, aren't they? Scully's abduction and rape along with shooting Jeremy."

Skinner sighed. "As I stated to you last year when the explosion of the federal building happened in Dallas, blame has to be placed somewhere. But you are right, they are going to try and take you for everything if they can. You are an agent who doesn't follow protocol and is considered a pain in the ass to the FBI. It won't take much for them to find you responsible."

Mulder ran his hand through his hair. "Sir, whatever happens to me I want you to promise me that you will look after Scully. I want you…to make sure that she gets the proper psychiatric or medical care that she needs. I'll provide whatever funding I can."

"I promise she will get the best possible care I can find. But Agent Mulder, I have to warn you that this meeting with OPR is going to be different then what happened in Dallas. They are going to treat you like a criminal until you are proven innocent."

Mulder looked down at his orange jump suit. "Yeah, I kind of figured that after the wardrobe they provided me when I got here."

"I'm serious, Agent Mulder. Right now your saving grace is that Scully is still alive. The important thing is that you tell the truth and not lose your temper otherwise they will hang you out to dry. Do you understand?"

"All too well, Sir."

The door then opened again and a man stepped in. "Agent Mulder, I need you to come with me."

Mulder turned to Skinner. "Guess they got the pyre ready for me for my burning."

"Just remember what I said, Agent Mulder. Good luck." Skinner answered before stepping outside.

Mulder slowly rose from the floor and followed the man out the door. He did know that Skinner was right, the FBI would try their hardest to point the finger at him. And he already had enough strikes against him as it was. Not to mention the fact that the Director had been trying to get him out of the Bureau for the past six years. He followed the man through some double doors and into a large room. As he made his way to the front, he swore it seemed like he was really on trial in a courtroom. And in a sense, he was.

"Please state your full name for the panel."

Mulder cleared his throat. "Fox William Mulder. I'm a Special Agent for the FBI and work in the X-Files division."

A man sitting in the panel leaned forward in his chair. "Agent Mulder, you have been brought before this panel in regards to your behavior during a recent FBI undercover operation. You are also currently being detained for the shooting of the suspect Jeremy Reinsfeld as well as the circumstances leading to the condition of your partner, Agent Scully. Are you aware of these charges?"

"I am."

"We have written testimony from five agents that say you chose to interfere with the undercover operation when you were instructed by your superior not to. Is this true?"

"Yes, Sir."

"May I ask why you chose to ignore a direct order from a superior?"

"Well, Sir as you know when the riot occurred outside of our surveillance van, things were in major chaos. All of the agents outside were dealing with the crowd and so could not keep their eye on Agent Scully. And…since she was out there all alone, I thought it would only be best if someone was out there with her with the suspect having been spotted earlier."

"But Agent Scully was not there when you arrived?"

"No. When I arrived at the spot where she had last been seen, all that remained was her earpiece, which also showed signs, that there could have possibly been a struggle due to its state. So, I chose to walk a little down the alley to see if there was any sign of her. And it was there that I found an earring that she had been wearing. It was then that I determined our suspect Jeremy Reinsfeld had abducted Agent Scully and taken her somewhere near by."

"And you informed Assistant Director Skinner of this?"

"No, Sir. No, I did not." Mulder paused. "I thought under the circumstances that it would take too much time to catch up with the suspect since he already had much up on us already. I was only concerned for Agent Scully's safety and that she might be victim number six."

"So you chose to not tell Assistant Director Skinner of your intent and instead directed some agents to canvas the area. Even though you had absolutely NO authority to give them an order like that and they were already taking care of something else?"

Mulder sighed. "Yes, Sir but I was only thinking of Agent.."

"So you went into a secluded building on your own with no back up whatsoever to catch a serial killer who had killed five victims? A suspect who had eluded the FBI for months even with dozens of agents on his trail? What made you think that you as a single agent would make that different?"

"Well, I.."

"And if you were so considerate for Agent Scully's safety why did you risk it barging into a suspect's residence not knowing what to expect? How did you know it wasn't some kind of trap?"

"The only reason I went inside in the first place was because I found a thing of chloroform outside the door. And remembering back in FBI school, I figured it was there because someone had taken someone in there against their will. Chloroform is used for…"

"Everyone on this panel knows what chloroform is used for, Agent Mulder. There is no need to remind us. And so you went into the room and…"

"I used force to enter the room as I felt that Agent Scully was somewhere in there and in immediate danger from the suspect."

"So, you broke into an individual's residence without any authorization whatsoever and no warrant?"

"I felt under the circumstances it was important for me to get inside and ignore the minor details."

"Minor details? Agent Mulder, you going in that way is considered illegal! The suspect would have had every right to sue you and come after the FBI!"

"Sir.."

"So you break into someone's residence and then in the end shoot them in cold blood? Nice touch, Agent Mulder."

Mulder stood up. "Dammit, I shot him because of what he did to Agent Scully!"

"Regardless of that fact, you shot the suspect unarmed and when he was away from Agent Scully! There were two agents who witnessed your deed Agent Mulder. It was the two agents that you sent away AGAIN with absolutely NO authority!"

"You have no idea what he did to her! I know because I was there!"

"And let's talk about your partner, Agent Mulder. Right now, Agent Scully is lying in a hospital comatose. If she dies, it will be because you chose to shoot the suspect rather than attend to her!"

"What?! Are you kidding me? I told the agents in the room to get medical help!"

"And you shot the unarmed suspect out of revenge!"

"Did Assistant Director Skinner tell you what I told him? Did he tell you about what I witnessed? About what Jeremy Reinsfeld did to Agent Scully?!"

"What the Assistant Director said in his testimony is irrelevant to you, Agent Mulder. Not to mention it is confidential in nature."

Mulder slammed his hands on the table in anger. "He raped her, dammit! He cut her and beat her right in front of me and made me watch showing no remorse whatsoever!"

"That's enough, Agent Mulder."

"He fondled her and laughed at me while he did it!"

"I said, that's enough, Agent Mulder! Now, you will refrain yourself now or face the consequences! Do you understand?"

Mulder sighed and took his seat once again. "Just go ahead and pass me my sentence."

"Excuse me?"

"Well, it's obvious you've already decided I'm guilty, isn't it?"

"You are facing very serious charges, Agent Mulder. You do realize that Jeremy Reinsfeld died in the hospital last evening after succumbing to the injuries that you gave him. That changes your charge from attempted murder to murder."

Mulder swallowed. He had to admit he hadn't thought of that instance when he killed Jeremy._ Oh god they are going to hang me with this._ "No, Sir. I wasn't aware that the suspect had died in the hospital recently."

"Due to the circumstances surrounding this incident as well as the testimony from Assistant Director Skinner, the charge of murder has been lessened." The man paused. "However, due to your acts against protocol along with endangerment of your partner, we have no choice but to dismiss you from the Bureau."

Mulder looked back at him. "What? You can't do that! There should at least be a suspension! And I didn't put Scully's life in danger, I saved her!"

"This is not the first time you have gone against protocol is it, Agent Mulder? Nor is this the first time you have been before this panel."

Mulder rose from his seat again and walked up to the panel. "You son-of-a-bitch! I will take the fall for not following protocol! But I will NOT take it for endangerment of my partner's life! You will not blame me for what that bastard did to her!"

"Agent Mulder, I advise you to restrain yourself immediately! For if you do not then this panel will reconsider adding back on that murder charge and getting rid of that particular testimony which prevented you from ending up in prison! I'm sure you would prefer the life of a civilian over prison, would you not?"

Mulder gave a chuckle.

"Something amusing, Agent Mulder?"

"You have been trying to nail me and get me fired for the past six years. And now you've finally accomplished that act through the simple device of playing a serial killer's game. I congratulate you."

"You will leave your badge and gun with the Assistant Director once you leave this room. If there is any indication that you have attempted to continue your work on the X-Files then the murder charge will be brought against you. Is that clear?"

"Crystal." Mulder replied turning away from the panel and walking toward the door.

"Oh and keep something in mind, Agent Mulder."

Mulder turned back around. "What's that?"

"Should Agent Scully die, you would be responsible for two murders. One of a civilian and the other of a federal officer. That would not hold up very well for a civilian in court now would it?"

Mulder gritted his teeth. He couldn't believe they had the gall to bring up such a thing. They were right though with a case like that and him as a civilian, he wouldn't stand a chance in hell. "No, it wouldn't, Sir."

"I hope for your sake that Agent Scully lives."

"Then we wish the same thing, Sir. Although not for the same reasons." Without another word, Mulder walked out of the room where he found Skinner waiting.

"Well?"

"The murder charge has been lessened thanks to your testimony."

Skinner breathed a sigh of relief. "I was hoping they would listen to me."

"But I have been relieved of my duty from the Bureau."

Skinner's face fell. "What?"

"I've been ordered to leave the Bureau or the murder charge for Jeremy will be put back on me only as a civilian. They did that to make sure there was no possible way I could fight it as an FBI Agent."

"Mulder, they can't do that."

"It's done. And if Scully dies, they'll have me as the murderer of a federal officer as well."

"Those bastards." Skinner muttered. "They can't get away with this!"

"Sir, I know you did everything you could but this has been a long time coming. This was just the opportunity they needed to get rid of me. They're probably grateful that I shot Jeremy and that he eventually died. But not because I got a serial killer off the streets. No it was because it caused Fox "Spooky" Mulder to be kicked out of the Bureau." He watched as a guard walked up with Mulder's badge and gun, handing them to him. He put them in Skinner's hands. "I believe these belong to you now, Sir."

Skinner looked down at the items and then back at Mulder. "I can't believe this is actually happening."

"Well, think of it this way. You won't be called in front of your superiors anymore for something that "Spooky" Mulder did."

"I won't know how to react." Skinner answered with a half smile.

"Well, if you'll excuse me, Sir I need to collect my clothes and go home and feed my fish. Catch ya later, Walter." Mulder replied with a smirk before walking away with the guard.

Skinner stood in absolute shock as he held Mulder's FBI credentials in his hand. He couldn't believe how calm Mulder was taking his dismissal. I mean he did realize that with Mulder no longer in the FBI that the X-Files would be shut down right? And what would happen to Scully now should she survive?


	8. Taking A Chance

Mulder had spent every minute of the past few days dealing with Scully. He knew he had to be careful due to the trouble he was already in with the FBI. If they found out that he was seeing Scully, they could find a way to use it against him somehow. Probably say he was trying to kill her or some other crazy stuff. Anyway, he didn't plan on taking that chance. And Skinner had kept him up to date on Scully's condition, which sadly had not changed. Then came the day that he couldn't take it anymore. He had to see her. What if something happened to her and he wasn't able to see her again? No, they had come too far in their partnership for him not to show that respect for her. He would also feel guilt if she died and he didn't see her one last time.

He drove to the hospital wearing a t-shirt, blue jeans and a leather jacket. He had to admit he felt awkward appearing in civilian clothes but it also might allow him to sneak in easier as well. The last thing the FBI would be looking for was a man dressed in regular clothes in a hospital. And he had also put on a ball cap to complete his disguise as well. He walked into the elevator and pushed the button for Scully's floor. He was then surprised by a voice beside him.

"Agent Mulder, what are you doing?"

Mulder turned to see Skinner standing next to him. "Nice to know your investigative techniques are still active, Walter. And in case you forgot it's just Fox Mulder now."

"What do you think you're doing here?"

"I'm here to see, Scully."

"Are you crazy?" Skinner asked leaning toward him. "You can't let them see you here!"

"And what if she dies?" Mulder asked looking back at him. "What if she dies and I can't see her again? I think after all these years of having her as a partner you would understand. I owe her the respect of seeing her. And I don't care if I get caught or not. I just…need to see her."

Skinner sighed. "I'll get the guards away from her door. But you can't take any longer than 15 minutes, understand? After that, I can't be responsible for what may happen."

Mulder smiled. "Thank you. I'd kiss you if it wasn't so awkward."

"Be quick or the only thing you will be kissing is your ass goodbye." Skinner answered before walking off the elevator.

Mulder made his way to the waiting room while he awaited Skinner to take care of the guards. He would have to find a way to repay Skinner for everything he had done. But he knew there was nothing that would ever be able to truly express that. After a few minutes, he received a buzzing on his cell. Looking down he could see the ID was Skinner and he knew that was the signal.

Pulling his hat further down to shield his face he walked up and picked up a phone. "I'm here to see Dana Scully, please. Who?" He paused. "Her brother, Bill Scully." He cringed as he used Bill's name but it was all he could think of at the time. "Yes, thank you." He waited as the door buzzed and then pulled on the handle. He walked down the hallway toward Scully's room. "Ok, now let's just hope that Walter did what he promised or this will be a real short trip." He looked toward her room and found no one standing near it. "Way to go Walter." He muttered before walking up to the door and then carefully sneaking inside.

Walking over to the bed, he saw Scully in the same state he had left her. The only difference was the people that had been around her were replaced by tubes and monitors. He took a seat in the chair beside the bed and picked up her hand. "Hey Scully, it's me. Sounds so funny me saying that instead of you huh?" He gave a chuckle. "Every time you would answer me that way. It almost became your trademark you know? God, what I wouldn't give to hear you say that to me now. We really need to stop doing this, Scully. I think you and I have both been in the hospital enough times to make the FBI have to throw out their employee benefits because their insurance company had to pay so much. I'm uh really trying hard to keep it together here. But I want you to know I'm losing that battle." He paused. "Did I tell you that I used Bill's name to get in here to see you? Bet he would be pissed as hell if he found out huh?" He took a breath. "So, you're using this excuse to get out of going to dinner with me huh? If you didn't really want to go all you had to do was say so. I think I can admit this is the second time I've been really scared in my life. Both times have been because of you is that funny or what? I was afraid because of what Jeremy might do to you and now I'm afraid…" He swallowed. "I'm afraid I might lose you for good. You're the only thing that's kept me going this long, Scully. You've been the one thing that prevented me from taking my gun, putting it to my head and pulling the trigger. Did you know that? No, of course you didn't. Well, you know now, huh? I still have that gun, Scully. And it still has that bullet. And if you die…well then that bullet will be fired." He laid his head on her chest. "Please don't leave me, Scully. Let that gun remain in my drawer." He then heard a coughing noise. "Scully?" He lifted his head and watched in amazement as Scully's eyes slowly opened. "Hey, have a nice nap?"

Scully blinked her eyes. "Mulder? What…what happened?"

"Your body was tired so it went to sleep. You were in a coma for almost a week, Scully."

"I…I was?" She put a hand to her forehead. "Oh my god."

"But it's ok, Scully. You're past that now. You're awake and alive and that's all that matters."

Scully studied his attire. "Why…why are you dressed like a frump?"

"A frump? Why I'm offended, Scully. This is my Fox Mulder special ensemble. Don't you like it?"

"Seriously, Mulder why are you dressed like that?"

Mulder sighed. "Scully, you should get better first. The last thing you need is more stress."

"Mulder, what's going on? Why do you keep taking occasional glances toward the door?"

"They kicked me out, Scully."

"What? Who? What do you mean?"

"While you were in your coma, I was brought before OPR in regards to what happened during the undercover operation up to finding you and Jeremy." He paused. "They said that I went against protocol for the last time and endangered my partner which was cause for dismissal."

Scully sat up. "Mulder, they can't do that."

"It's done, Scully. We both know this is a bullet that has been circulating around my head for years. They were just looking for the right moment. They were going to have a murder charge brought against me because of Jeremy's death. But Skinner's testimony changed their mind for some reason. I'm guessing that Skinner had some people high up who were on his side or something."

"Well then I'll testify."

"No, Scully. They've already hung me; I don't want you to go with me. I need to just let this one go."

"But if you aren't in the Bureau anymore.."

"The X-Files will be shut down. I already know that."

"But I could stay on and…"

Mulder chuckled. "Scully, do you really think they are going to let you stay on? As soon as you have recuperated from your injuries, they will reassign you to wherever they please. You need to just let this go, Scully."

"But if you aren't in the FBI what will you do?"

Mulder shrugged his shoulders. "I really don't know, Scully. I do have a college degree in Psychology so I'm not completely helpless. I was even thinking I could still pursue the paranormal somehow. But the first thing I want to do is take care of you."

"Mulder…"

"No buts, Scully. I have all the time in the world now. You are going to need a lot of time to recuperate and I am going to help you."

"What…what exactly are my injuries?"

"You don't know?"

She shook her head. "I only remember bits and pieces."

"Scully, do you remember…did…Jeremy rape you?"

She paused trying to recollect. "I…I don't know. I…"

"It's ok. Don't try to remember it now. It will come back to you later, I'm sure."

She touched the side of her face where she felt a scar. "Mulder, what's wrong with my face?"

"Scully…"

She looked back at him. "What's wrong with it? Tell me."

"Jeremy cut you pretty bad with his knife, Scully. He…cut you across the face, neck, chest and stomach."

"Give me a mirror."

"Scully, please."

"Get me a mirror, I want to see!"

Mulder sighed as he handed her a tiny mirror. "Scully, whatever you think it's not permanent."

Scully held the mirror and gazed into it. Her eyes widened and she gasped as she saw the marks on her once innocent face. She traced the scratches with her fingers. "Oh my…my god. He's…he's marked me."

"Scully…"

"I'm forever scarred because of him!" She screamed as she closed her eyes lowering the mirror. "He…he took away my beautiful face."

Mulder shook his head. "No, Scully that's not true."

"Look at it!" Scully yelled as she picked up the mirror showing her scarred face in it. "I'm….I'm ugly now!"

Mulder reached forward cupping her face in his hands. "No, Scully. You aren't ugly. No matter what happens to your face, you are still beautiful to me."

She lowered the mirror taking in a breath. "I…I am?"

"You always have been to me, Scully. Why do you think I asked you out to dinner? Do you know how long it took me to work up the courage to ask you? Six years, Scully."

"That's a long time to wait."

"But it was worth it. And I still intend to take you out once you get better. If…you still want me to that is?" He traced her scratches delicately with his finger. "And as far as these marks go. They are acts of courage, Scully. What you did…was the bravest thing any Agent could do. In the end, you're the reason we caught him, Scully. It wasn't me. It was you."

"Oh, Mulder." She reached forward hugging him tightly. "I…I was so scared."

He caressed her hair. "Sssssh, don't think about that now. You just think of getting better ok?" He glanced at his watch and sighed.

"What is it, Mulder?"

"I have to go, Scully."

"Go? But you just got here."

"I know but Skinner said I only had a maximum of 15 minutes to be in here. That's how long he could detain the guards. If they come back and find me here…"

"It's ok, I understand. I just…"

"What?"

"Well, I heard you say that I was your strength. But…you're mine, Mulder. If there is one thing I do remember about that terrible ordeal it's your face. The whole time you looked at me assuring me that everything would be all right. If it hadn't been for your face, I would have just given up hope altogether. Jeremy was the gun pointed at my head with that bullet."

"Oh my god you heard me when I talked about the gun?"

"I did. And when you leave here, I want you to go home and take that gun out of your drawer and take the bullet out. If you want to do something for me right now, that is it."

"I promise to do it as soon as I get back." He hugged her again tightly before pulling away. "And I want you to get better so I can take you home ok? Don't worry, I will have Skinner make sure there are no glitches on me doing that."

"I'll have a miraculous recovery." Scully answered holding his hand. "Take…take care of yourself."

"I will. And I promise to check on you every day through Skinner." He lifted her hand kissing it. "Think about where you want to go eat for that dinner while you're getting better ok?"

"I'll think of the most expensive place I can find."

Mulder grinned. "Hey be careful. Remember I'm a civilian now. Don't have a Bureau Gold Card any more." He touched her hair. "Take care, Scully. And remember no matter what he did to you, I'm going to help you. And the more you fight and keep that spirit of yours, the quicker those scars will disappear."

"I'll…I'll remember." Scully answered with a half smile. "Now go."

Mulder nodded before rising from the chair. "Rest well, Scully."

"Oh and Mulder?"

Mulder turned toward her. "Yeah?"

"Don't ever wear that outfit ensemble together again ok?"

Mulder smiled. "You got it." He then walked out of the room.

Scully laid her head back on her pillow and let out a sigh. She had heard every single word that Mulder had spoken to her while he was at her bedside. She could almost sense that there was something else he wanted to confess to her but was afraid of. He had called her beautiful but it was more than just a comment she felt. She didn't tell Mulder but while she was in her coma, she had revisited the place she had been at when she had returned from her abduction four years ago. But this time there was something different about it. Instead of the peacefulness there was some kind of ominous presence looming somewhere. Was it in her imagination or was this a sign of some kind?


	9. A Sign or Just Imagination?

Mulder had spent the week taking care of Scully's apartment. He had even donned an apron as he went about his housekeeping duties. He found that once he got the stereo going that it made the housework much easier to handle. Granted, he wasn't exactly jamming to classical music like Scully would have been. No, instead he was letting his spirits be carried away by classic rock. Oh yes and the occasional Elvis song would also be played as well. He knew if anyone from the Bureau saw him now they would laugh their asses off. Then again, whoever thought that "Spooky" Mulder would be wearing an apron and doing housework? At this point, he didn't care. He would do anything to help Scully. He knew she would have enough to deal with once she got out of the hospital anyway. And he planned to be with her every step of the way as he promised. He could just see the look on her face when she walked in her door and saw her apartment all-sparkling clean. He had to admit seeing a smile on her face was a motivator for doing what he was. She had the most beautiful smile to him. It just accented everything about her. He turned up the stereo as he used the feather duster. "Slow ride!" He sang using the feather duster like a guitar. "Take it easy!"

"Mulder?" Came a voice from behind him.

Mulder jumped, clearly startled by the voice and sent the feather duster into the air. He turned around and found Skinner staring at him oddly. "Walter? How…how did you get in here?"

"I knocked on the door but there was no answer. I found the door unlocked so I came in. I judged by the…loud music that there was someone in here." He glanced at Mulder's apron and gave a smirk.

"I….thought it would be best to wear while I was dusting." He quickly turned down the stereo. "I just didn't want Scully to come back to a dirty apartment you know?"

Skinner eyed him strangely. "Sure. Anyway, I just came to tell you that she is being released this afternoon."

Mulder's eyes brightened. "She is?"

Skinner nodded. "Her doctor's have deemed her healthy enough to leave the hospital. But she is going to require constant care."

Mulder made a pose in his apron. "That's what I'm here for."

"You plan to take care of her?"

Mulder nodded. "It's already been arranged. Since I don't have a job as of now, I am perfectly capable of taking care of her."

"You really think that's wise?"

"No offense, Walter but it's none of your business. I almost lost my partner. I prayed that she would come back to me and she did. She's saved me in more ways than one in my life and now I intend to pay her back in my own way. And since I'm out of the FBI it won't matter anymore about our relationship."

"You're thinking of going beyond a platonic relationship?"

"We were contemplating it just before the undercover operation, yes. I had planned on taking her out to dinner that night you know.

"Just be careful."

"Walter, the last thing I would do is want to hurt, Scully. She's….everything to me. I mean, who knows? We may go out to dinner and find out that having a romantic relationship isn't what we want anyway." He paused. "But I can't spend the rest of my life wondering what would have happened had we tried. But I promise you that I won't hurt her no matter what. To hurt her would be like cutting my arm off."

Skinner gave a half smile. "I don't know why but I always suspected you two would end up in a romantic relationship."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Guess it came from seeing just how deeply you care for one another. Anyone that would risk what you did for Scully in front of OPR as well as how she has risked her career for you. Well, there just had to be something there to fuel that. Just take good care of her."

"I will." Mulder took off his apron. "What do you say, we have a little drink to celebrate Scully's homecoming before we venture to the hospital?"

"You read my mind." Skinner answered as he followed Mulder to the kitchen.

* * *

Scully sat up in her hospital bed with her mom and Bill in the room. It had been days since she had been able to move about without being held back by tubes in her nose and arms. It had been a long week for her but now she had received the news that she was going to be allowed to go home. Her mother of course had instantly volunteered to take her in but she had told her that it was Mulder who had stepped up to the plate.

"I can't believe you are just going to leave her to be attended by that…that man." Bill Scully replied looking at Margaret.

"Bill…"

"I mean, come on, Mom! He was almost responsible for her death in that stake out!"

"He saved me, Bill." Scully answered looking back at Bill coldly. "He risked his life to come in that room."

"That's not what the FBI said, Dana."

"It doesn't matter what the FBI said, Bill. I know because I was there." She paused. "Were you?"

Bill huffed at her before stepping out of the room and closing the door behind him.

"You'll have to excuse him, Dana. He's just concerned for you is all."

"I'm just sick and tired of him putting down, Mulder, Mom. He doesn't give him any respect at all."

"You know how Bill is, Dana. He only chooses to see his side of things and no one else's. He sadly has some of that Scully bullheaded ness." She smiled at Scully. "Kind of like someone else I know?"

Scully smiled back. "Ok, point taken. I just wish he would lay off, Mulder. He's really a good person, Mom. And to be honest…I'm glad he's taking care of me."

Margaret took her daughter's hand. "I know, Dana. But you know you are going to have to call me every day to let me know how you are doing. That's the only stipulation I have about letting you go with Fox."

There was then a gentle tapping at the door as it creaked open. "Am I interrupting?" Mulder asked with a smile.

Margaret turned to him. "Hello, Fox. And no you weren't. I was just telling my daughter how she is in good hands with you."

"Gee thanks, Mrs. Scully. I promise I'll take good care of your daughter."

"I know you will, Fox. If she can't be with me, I can't think of anyone else she should be with excepting you."

"Yeah, well I ran into someone on the way in here who told me otherwise."

"Don't listen to him, Fox. I wouldn't just entrust my daughter to anyone you know." She turned back to Scully. "Do you need me to help you get dressed Dana?"

"No, I'm ok, Mom."

"Ok. Well I brought a change of clothes for you here in this bag." Margaret handed her the bag.

"Thanks, Mom."

Margaret smiled. "I'll be waiting right outside the door ok?" She kissed Scully on the forehead before walking out of the room.

"I'll be waiting outside too. That is unless you want ME to help you get undressed. I'm usually pretty good at that part." Mulder replied with a smirk.

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm afraid of. No thanks, Spooky boy I think I can manage."

Mulder gave her a pouty look. "Fine." He then kissed her hand. "I'll be right out there with your Mom ok? Just call if you need anything."

"I will." She watched as Mulder approached the door. "Mulder?"

Mulder turned around. "Yeah?"

"Thank you for doing this for me. Agreeing to take care of me, I mean."

"I told you there was nothing I wouldn't do for you, Scully. And I mean that." He gave her a smile before walking out and closing the door behind him.

Scully let out a sigh. "He's such a wonderful man. I don't care what Bill says, he is." She slowly rose from her bed and pulled out the pair of blue jeans and t-shirt from the bag that her mother had brought along with a bra and clean underwear. She picked them up and headed into the bathroom, keeping the door half way open since she was the only patient in the room and would hear if anyone else walked in the room. She undid her hospital gown and slid it slowly down her body until it fell to the ground. She looked back in the mirror and for the first time could clearly see the scars that had been left behind from Jeremy's knife.

Her head jerked as she began to have flashbacks of Jeremy cutting her across the face and neck. She could still feel the cold steel of the knife as it tore into her skin. Glancing down she saw the scars and stitches from where Jeremy had stabbed her in the stomach. She could still hear his voice just before he gave her the nearly fatal stab.

"_And now my sweet, Dana…you die!"_

She flinched as she could feel the knife entering her stomach again, ripping into her tender flesh. She closed her eyes as tears trickled down her cheeks. It was slowly starting to come back to her now. Her doctor had told her that her memory of the incident would eventually return but would start out in bits and pieces each time. She put on her bra carefully. "At least it's over." She whispered. She then felt coldness move across her face and gasped. The entire room suddenly turned ice cold and she could even see her own breath as she breathed. She looked around trembling as she rubbed her shoulders to keep warm.

"_Do you really think it is, sweet, Dana?"_ Came a voice from nowhere.

Scully turned upon hearing the voice. "Who is that? Hello?" She called toward the room from the bathroom. "Is….is someone here?" She swallowed. "Is someone…" It was at that moment that the bathroom door slammed shut. She ran to it and tried to open it but found it locked. "Hello?" She shouted through the door as she pounded. "Can someone here me?" She pounded again. "The door is locked could someone…" She once again felt a cold draft in the room and stopped pounding. This time the breeze slowly drifted up her body. She trembled violently as it felt as if hands were touching her.

"_Did you miss me, sweet, Dana?"_

Scully instantly recognized the voice speaking to her. It was a voice that she would never be able to escape from. "No." She whispered. "It's….it's just all in my head. I'm just….I'm just having head trauma."

The breeze rustled her hair._ "Oh no sweet, Dana. I am indeed here and intend to finish what I started. Look into the mirror and you will see."_

Scully slowly turned around and looked into the mirror. Her eyes widened as she saw the face of Jeremy slowly start to materialize. "No. Oh god please no." She watched as the face gave an evil smile. She screamed before fainting and falling to the floor. The face gave an evil laugh before disappearing.

Mulder was waiting outside the room with Margaret when he heard the scream. He turned to Margaret. "Did you hear that?"

Margaret nodded before running into the room. She noticed the bathroom door closed and knocked. "Dana?" She knocked again. "Dana?" Not receiving an answer she looked at Mulder.

Mulder walked up and knocked. "Scully? Scully, can you hear me?" He knocked a second time. "Ok, Scully I'm going to bust in there if you don't answer me." He waited for an answer. "All right, here I come. 1…2….3!" He threw himself against the door and kicked it as hard as he could. After a few tries, the door swung open and he ran inside where he found Scully lying on the floor. "Scully?" He bent down to her and cradled her head.

Margaret came in after Mulder. "Dana!" She went and sat next to Mulder. "What happened? Is…is she ok?"

Mulder nodded. "She appears to be breathing. I think she fainted."

"From what?" Margaret asked looking back at him.

Scully's eyes then flew open and she started to squirm in Mulder's arms. "No! No! Keep away from me!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Scully. Hey, hey take it easy! It's me. It's Mulder."

Scully stopped moving and looked into his eyes. "Mulder?"

"The one and only." He was surprised as Scully buried her head in his shoulder and started to cry. "Ssssh, it's ok. You're safe now. I'm here. Your mother's here."

"Can you tell us what happened, Dana?" Margaret asked giving her a concerned look.

"I…I saw him." Scully whispered as she raised her head slightly.

"Saw who, sweetie?" Margaret asked as she caressed Scully's hair.

"Jeremy. I…I saw Jeremy. He was here….in this bathroom…in the mirror."

"Jeremy?" Margaret asked.

"Jeremy….Jeremy Reinsfeld."

"The serial killer?" Margaret gave her a smile. "Dana, honey he can't get you anymore…he's dead. What you saw was just in your imagination…"

"I saw him, Mom! He was here!" Scully turned to Mulder. "You believe me, don't you, Mulder?"

"Mrs. Scully I think you should stay in here and help Scully get dressed."

"I think that's a good idea, Fox." Margaret answered as she helped Mulder slowly get Scully to her feet.

"I'll be right outside ok?" Mulder replied looking at Scully.

"Mulder…"

"Ssssh." Mulder answered putting a finger on her lips. "Just get dressed and then I can take you home ok? We can talk more then."

"O…ok." Scully replied trying to smile.

Mulder smiled at her and touched Scully's cheek before walking out the door and closing it behind him. He took a seat on the hospital bed and put his hands together. Was it true? Had Scully really just seen, Jeremy? He began to recollect what Jeremy had said about killing him would not be the end but just the beginning. Did what Scully claimed to have just seen an indication of that? Or was it just all in her head?


	10. Scully's Homecoming

The entire ride back to Scully's apartment neither partner said anything to the other. Scully sat in the passenger seat staring out the window with her jacket wrapped around her. And as for Mulder, he just kept his attention on driving them. Even though he said nothing, his mind was teeming with what had happened in her hospital room. She had said nothing since he had left the room and her mother had helped her dress. Margaret and he had decided that it was best not to push the issue. After all, Scully had already been through enough as it was. But what had actually happened in that bathroom? He turned and saw her leaning on the door still staring out the window. The sunlight fell upon her red hair and played upon her delicate face. Mulder had not lied when he had told her she was beautiful. He had felt that way from the very first day she had walked into his office. Her hair was shorter now and her figure slightly thinner but other than that, she looked the same. And she had gone from a straight skeptic to someone who did not so easily dismiss other possibilities. She was truly a remarkable woman to him. And after her recent trauma she had also shown more courage then he had ever seen in anyone. He finally pulled up to her apartment and turned off the car. "Scully? We're here."

"Good." Scully answered still turned toward the window.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine. I just want to get inside and have a nice bath."

Mulder smiled. That was indeed a good sign for he knew his partner lived for baths. "I think we can arrange that. Come on, let's get you inside." He took his keys out the ignition and then stepped out going over to Scully's side. "Do you need any help?"

"I'm not a cripple, Mulder." Scully replied. "And remember I also have this." She pulled out a metal cane and placed it on the ground. There was something she still had trouble with when it came to mobility and that was standing up. Her legs had weakened slightly but once she stood up, she was able to walk. She grabbed the handle of the cane and leaned on it as she pulled herself up.

Mulder hated seeing Scully use a cane even if it was for just a small part. Jeremy had left his mark on her physically and mentally but he could tell she was determined not to let it beat her. He followed behind her as she walked slowly up into the complex. As they walked to the elevator, he noticed a couple neighbors turning to look at her. If Scully noticed their stares she didn't show it as she stepped into the elevator. Mulder followed right behind her and pushed the button going to her floor.

The elevator door opened and Scully was the first to step off and head down the hallway to her apartment. She pulled out her keys and was about to unlock the door when Mulder stepped in front of her.

"Wait, wait." Mulder replied as he put his hand on hers preventing her from turning the key.

"Mulder, what is it?"

"I want you to let me open it and close your eyes."

"What?"

"Please, Scully. Do it for me?"

"Well….ok. But if there's a huge stain on my carpet or couch you're in trouble." She answered as she put her hands over her face.

Mulder smiled as he gently took her hand away from the key. As he placed her hand in his he could feel the warmth emanating from it. Her delicate hand felt so natural in his. He used his other hand to finish unlocking the door and it slowly creaked open. He then led her inside and closed the door behind them. He led her into the living room.

"Can I open them now?"

Mulder leaned into her ear. "Ok, open them." He whispered.

Scully looked around at the sparkling room before her. Not a thing was out of place and there were even a few extras she had not had before. She glanced over at the coffee table, which had a tabletop fountain and candles. "Oh, Mulder." She breathed.

"Do you like it?"

"Like it?" She noticed the crystal hanging from the ceiling. "This looks like something you would find in a New Age shop or something."

"Actually, it was from a friend of mine who practices herbal treatments. He said that these things would help give a more peaceful atmosphere and help you with your healing. But if you don't like them I can.."

Scully turned and hugged him tightly. "Thank you, Mulder."

Mulder closed his eyes as his senses took in the smell of her hair. He reached his hand up and caressed a few strands with his fingers. "You're welcome." He whispered. "I told you I would help you in any way I can and I will." His lips were very close to her neck but he refrained from kissing it as difficult as it was. He had to remember that she was still recuperating from what had happened with Jeremy. "Listen, how about I run you a bath while you get settled in?"

Scully pulled back from him. "You? Run me a bath?"

Mulder nodded and touched her cheek. "And then afterwards a nice, quiet dinner."

"Wait, now you are going to cook? Who are you and what have you done with Fox Mulder?" She asked in a teasing voice.

"Hey, now. I can cook. I may have burned some things…errrr….scorched them here and there. But I'm getting better."

"Uh-huh and what was the last thing you cooked?"

"The last thing?" Mulder paused. "I think it was pork chops."

"And what happened? I mean…it really isn't that difficult to cook pork chops."

"Well, let's just say that I had some extra cash in my pocket so I ordered me a pizza."

"You're not planning on giving me pizza tonight, are you?"

"What?" Mulder furrowed his brow. "No, no. No way. Pizza isn't good enough for you."

"Really?"

"Yep. Tonight you get something special for your homecoming. So, why don't you get in and take your bath? And then when you get done, you'll have a nice, hot dinner waiting for you."

"Hmmmm….maybe I should have something terrible like this happen to me more often?" She asked as she tilted her head with a smile.

Mulder touched her nose. "Hey, now don't even think that. I've always wanted to do something like this for you but we were always so busy with work. Now, I'm unemployed." He rubbed noses with her. He realized he was beginning to be drawn into her blue eyes and this could quickly turn into something more than just an innocent talk. "Why….why don't you go take your bath?" He whispered. "I'm sure it would make you feel better."

"Oh…ok." She whispered back. "Try not to burn down my kitchen if you can. The fire extinguisher is by the refrigerator." She then kissed his cheek before moving away and heading toward the bathroom.

Mulder stood unable to move from where he was. He had impressed her with what he had done! And they had been so close to one another. He clenched his fist in triumph. "Yes! I have achieved a victory! There is still hope for me yet." He touched his cheek where she had kissed him and smiled before heading to the kitchen. He pulled out a chef hat from the cupboard along with an apron that said _Kiss the Cook_. "Now, let's get cooking!"

Scully turned on the bath water and let it run while she slowly took off her clothes. She still couldn't believe what Mulder had done to her apartment! She would never have expected anything like that from him! It was like his being fired had turned him into another person or something. Or maybe he secretly had wanted to do something like this for a long time like he said but just didn't have the time? Either way, she was happy with the change. Coming home to an apartment that was even cleaner then when she had done it? Having candles, crystals and a fountain? She was truly grateful that she had met Fox Mulder now. And she was still tingling from how close they were just a few minutes ago. She knew it was her partner but she was having more and more trouble trying to hide those feelings buried deep within her. So, what was stopping her?

"What if he doesn't feel the same way?" She whispered as she looked in the mirror. "What if I pour my heart out to him and he just stomps on it? Still…I don't really think he would hurt me like that." Her thoughts were then interrupted as the mirror made a splitting sound. She watched as a huge crack began to form across the mirror from one end to the other. "What the?" She stepped back just in time as the mirror suddenly completely shattered, sending shards of glass to the floor.

Mulder was in the kitchen, cooking when he heard the crashing noise. An uneasy feeling crept over him and he dashed for the bathroom door. "Scully?" He pounded on the door. "Scully?"

Scully opened the door still dressed in her bra and underwear. She looked at Mulder as she trembled.

"Scully?" Mulder then saw the shattered mirror. "Jesus, what happened?"

"I….I don't know. I was just standing in front of the mirror and it started to crack."

Concern immediately set upon him. "Did you get cut?" He asked as he started to look her over. It didn't even cross his mind that she was standing in front of him in her bra and underwear. He was too worried for her to care.

She shook her head. "No, I'm….I'm fine."

Mulder turned and headed to a closet getting a broom and dustpan. He started to sweep the glass into the dustpan. After finishing, he picked up the dustpan and emptied it into the bathroom trash. "Are you going to be ok?" Mulder asked touching under her chin.

"Really, Mulder I'm ok. It…it was an old mirror anyway. Must have finally given in to the pressure."

Mulder sighed. "Ok. But if you need anything don't hesitate to call me."

"I won't." She pulled on his chef hat. "Now, go back to your cooking, Mr. Chef." She replied with a half smile.

Mulder smiled back. "Remember, don't hesitate." He then walked out closing the door behind him.

"He's really quite a man." Scully whispered as she took off her bra and underwear. She took one last look at the remains of the mirror and then climbed into the bathtub. She sighed as the warm, sudsy water touched her skin. No sponge bath at the hospital could compare to what she was having now. That is…unless the sponge bath was given to her from someone besides a nurse. She closed her eyes as she imagined that particular sponge bath.

She could see herself sitting up in the bathtub with her back to the door. She then heard the door open and close. She then became conscious of a sponge upon her back, slowly moving down her body. As the sponge continued its journey, she then felt lips kissing her neck and a tongue teasing it. She moaned and shifted slightly in the tub as she licked her lips. "Mmmm…Mulder."

_Little Red_

Scully's eyes then shot open as she realized that was something Mulder would never say. She started to feel something moving up her leg, almost like an invisible hand. She gasped and moved to the back of the tub, pulling her legs up. "Who's….who's here?" She asked as her voice echoed in the bathroom. She then felt her hair being caressed and turned her head to see who it was.

_Care to go for a little dip, Red?_

The next thing Scully knew she felt a pressure on top of her head and she was pushed under water. She writhed in the tub as she struggled to push herself back up to the surface but found herself held down by some force. She started to kick her feet desperately sending waves through the tub and water to the floor. She managed to get her head up once and a breath. "Mulder!" She was then pushed down again.

Mulder was putting the finishing touches to the main dish for dinner when he heard her voice. He picked up his head. "Scully?"

Scully continued to thrash about in the tub trying desperately to break free of the mysterious force, which had her pinned. Pain shot through her as her legs hit the side of the tub. She could also feel water slowly entering her mouth.

Mulder walked up to the bathroom door and knocked. "Scully?" Receiving no answer, he knocked again as he put his ear to the door. "Scully?" His ears then picked up the sound of splashing. He glanced down and could see water coming from the bottom of the door. "Oh, god!Scully!" He went to open the door but found it mysteriously locked. "What the hell?" He jiggled the handle and pounded on the door. "Scully!"

Scully continued fighting with her invisible tormentor. She could feel her body starting to weaken from her lack of oxygen and her struggles becoming less dramatic. She could feel herself slowing slipping away. In her mind she saw Jeremy at the top of the water laughing at her.

Mulder threw himself against the door as hard as he could. "Hang on, Scully! I'm coming!" His shoulder hurt from the impact of the door but he continued trying until it finally gave way and opened with a splitting crack. He then saw Scully lying underwater in the tub. "Scully!" He ran to the tub and quickly pulled her out and into his arms. He wrapped her in a towel and then laid her on the floor. "Scully?" He checked her neck for a pulse and listened for breathing. "Oh shit!" He immediately started CPR on her. "Dammit, Scully you aren't going to die on me! We've come too far now for that to happen! Fight this, Scully! Dammit, fight!" His pleadings became more frantic as he continued trying to revive her. He looked up at the ceiling. "Please, God! Don't take another person I care about!"

A sputtering could then be heard followed by a body twitching.

Mulder looked back down. "Scully?"

Scully then started to cough up water and began wheezing as she tried to catch her breath.

"Scully!" Mulder cradled her head as she continued to cough and gasp.

"Help me!" Scully called out as she started to struggle in Mulder's arms.

"Scully?" Mulder touched her forehead. "Whoa, whoa, Scully it's ok. Take it easy."

"Don't touch me!"

"Scully, it's me." Mulder answered as he kept his grip. "Open your eyes. It's Mulder."

Scully stopped struggling and slowly opened her eyes. "Mulder?"

"Mr. Chef himself."

"Oh, god!" Scully reached forward and grabbed him tightly as she cried. She buried her head into his shoulder as she trembled.

Mulder patted her back gently. "Sssssh…it's ok. You're safe now." He lifted one hand to caress her hair. "Dana, it's ok." He replied in a calm voice. He kissed the side of her face as he closed his eyes. "I thought I was going to lose you there for a second." The only response he received was more crying from Scully. It broke his heart to see her like this. He continued to caress her hair gently and speak to her until he could gradually feel her shaking lessening. He then pulled back and lifted her chin with his hand. "You want to tell me what happened?"

"It was him again." She whispered.

"Him?"

Scully nodded. "Jeremy. He was here and tried to drown me." And it was at that instant, that everything started to come back to her from the terrible ordeal that night. "I remember." Her eyes went blank for a second before focusing on Mulder again. "I remember what happened that night, Mulder."

"Before you recall anything, let's get you off the floor." He tucked the towel making sure it was tight enough around her and then carefully lifted her from the floor. He carried her to the bedroom and gently set her on the bed. He took a seat beside her. "Now, I want you to tell me everything, Scully. What happened that night, in the hospital bathroom and here in the bathtub. As much as you can."

* * *

NOTE: A thousand apologies for me not updating! I had just recently moved and had been doing renovations. Then I also was sick for some time. BUT I am back now and will try and update this once a week! So, for those of you who have been reading, THANK YOU for your patience and continued support! 


	11. Recollections and a Confession

Scully nodded and took in a breath. "I'll try as much as I can."

Mulder gently took her hand. "Go ahead. You've been holding so much within you these past few weeks, Scully. It's time you let them go. Your mind didn't want you to remember at that time but now it does. Get rid of that Scully so you can try and move on." He paused. "So that WE can."

Scully lowered her head. "I remember…I was standing on the street corner and then I saw the riot start. I wanted to get to safety but there was no place to go except for an alley. So, I stepped into it, thinking I would just wait until things had settled down. And then the next thing I knew I felt this hand over my mouth and knife to my throat. And then a voice said for me not to scream or he would cut my pretty little throat. And then I was dragged through the alley."

"So, I was right, he did drag you."

She lifted her head. "How would you have known that?"

"Well, for one thing we found your ear piece in the alley not far from where you were. And then while I was investigating that area I found one of your earrings. I instantly recognized it as being a part of the pair I gave you for a gift. And…I basically thought that the one had fallen off due to force of some kind. So, I concluded that you had been dragged."

Scully smiled. "Your powers of deduction never cease to amaze me."

"But they weren't good enough to catch a serial killer." Mulder muttered under his breath.

"Mulder, you can't blame yourself."

But that wasn't true. He did blame himself and right now was struggling to keep his emotions in check. Before he expressed his true emotions, he needed to know exactly what Jeremy had done to her. "So, he dragged you to a room?"

"Yes. He told me how angry he was that the riot had taken place and spoiled his fun. He said I had been special there waiting for him. And he….he called me his Little Red. Then he dragged me toward this back room and said it was going to be time for my revealing."

"Revealing?"

Scully nodded. "Then he sat me on the bed and asked my name. He called me his goddess because I was named after one. And…he said he would never hurt his goddess." She swallowed. "And then….he…he started to touch me."

"Touch you?"

"He ran his hands up my legs and touched me under my panties." She closed her eyes tightly.

Mulder squeezed her hand reassuringly. He could feel how much this was hurting her. "It's ok, Scully. You don't have to go into detail. What happened after he touched you? Did he hurt you?"

"No. He started talking to me about how whores were nothing but a good fuck and nothing else. And to emphasize that fact he put the knife to my throat making me agree with him."

"But he didn't cut you?"

"Not at that time."

"Then what changed his mind to make him hurt you?"

"He was…moving his hands down my skirt and he pulled out my FBI ID from my pocket. I know it was stupid to have it with me. Believe me, I know that now." She paused. "After he saw that I was an FBI Agent I knew I had doomed myself. So…I tried to wrestle the knife away from him but he was too strong for me. He…ripped open my top with the knife and saw the wire attached to my bra."

"Oh god." Mulder replied in a soft voice as he saw the scenario in his head. Now he knew just why Jeremy had inflicted such pain upon Scully.

"He said he couldn't tolerate anyone who lied to him. So…he slapped me really hard across the face and I could feel the whole room spinning. Then he said that he was going to have to teach me a lesson for lying to him. He put the knife to my throat and told me to whisper softly or my death would be much slower."

"Jesus Christ." Mulder folded his hands and put his head on them. He was beginning to see more and more into Jeremy's mind and it was frightening. This was the very kind of serial killer that he had feared profiling. And to know that his partner was his innocent victim made it even worse. But he had to be brave for her. If it was difficult for him to hear this he could only imagine what it was like for her re-live it. "Go on, if you can."

"I passed out and then when I woke up I was handcuffed to a bed by my wrists in just my bra and panties. He was…waiting there with the knife to taunt me." She closed her eyes as she lowered her head again. "He..started asking questions about you."

"About me?"

"He saw the earring I had and asked if you had given it to me. Then he asked…if you had ever had sex with me. And then he…." She took in a breath as she trembled. "He started touching me and was claiming that he was showing me what I secretly…" She bit her lower lip.

Mulder didn't want to hear anymore. But he knew he had to know for his own sake. For his own peace of mind. He gently lifted her chin to look at him. "Scully, I know this is hard for you but I need to know." He took in a breath. "Did…did Jeremy rape you?" The words he spoke were like daggers to his heart.

"I pushed him off of me and he cut me. I turned toward the window and screamed for help. And then he gagged me and used the knife to tear off my panties. I could feel his erection on me…" She grabbed onto the sheets of the bed as she tried to control her emotions. "And then….he entered me."

His worst fear had just been realized. "That son-of-a-bitch!" Mulder screamed not being able to hold back any longer. He threw his head back and clenched his fists before slamming them on the bed.

Scully raised her head with tears streaming down her face. "Mulder…"

"That fucking bastard!" Mulder answered as his voice started to break. "How could he…" He looked upward and closed his eyes as tears streamed down his cheeks.

Scully reached forward and touched his shoulder. "Mulder, I tried to fight him. I swear I did. And I didn't want you to know. Oh god I didn't want you to find me like you did."

"But he raped you, Scully!" Mulder answered moving away from her touch. "He pushed himself into you by force! He hurt you!"

"I know he did. And he's dead now."

"I should have let that son-of-a-bitch suffer!" Mulder rose from the bed as his anger consumed him. "Death is too kind for him!" He sank to his knees. "I should have….I should have…" He swung his fists in the air as if he were aiming at some invisible intruder. He then buried his face in the carpet on the floor as sobs wracked his body.

Scully could not believe what she was witnessing. She had never seen Mulder act like this over her not even when she had been close to death from her cancer. The anger he was exhibiting was something she had never seen before. Was there some secret reason for it? She carefully eased herself off the bed and took a seat next to him on the floor. "Mulder, there was nothing you could have done."

Mulder raised his head. "I should have shot his damn head off! Sent his blood splattering against the wall!"

"And if you had done that, you would me a murderer. You would be in prison and not be here with me." She placed her hand on the side of his face. "Is that what you want? To be a murderer? To put yourself down to his level? You're better than that, Mulder. I know you are."

Mulder pulled away from her. "Don't tell me what I should be feeling!"

"And just how do you think I feel?" She asked as she laid her hands in front of her. "I'm the one who actually went through this! I'm the one who was cut and fondled! I'm the one who was violated! I'm the one who has to live with this experience forever! I'm the one who will be haunted by that face as long as I.." She turned her head as her lips trembled once again. "Please don't do this to me. You…are the one person I want to count on to help me, Mulder. You're the one person I believed wouldn't treat me like a victim. The person I believed would take care of me. And now here you are screaming and yelling about splattering some one's brains against the wall? What's happened to you?" She turned back around to face him. "I've known you for six years, Mulder. I know when you are trying to hide something from me. What is it? Please tell me."

"You want to know what it is?" Mulder asked as he ran a hand through his hair. "All right, I'll tell you, Scully. When I was sitting in that surveillance van watching you on that street corner.." His eyes took on a glazed look. "I made a decision right then and there. That after our stake-out was done that I was going to take you out to dinner."

"Yes, I know we both agreed on that before I left."

"But I also decided on something else too." He reached over and cupped her face. "After everything that's happened now, I know I can't hold it back any longer. Almost losing you has helped me to realize that." He sighed. "All right, I'm not going to beat around the bush here. I'm just going to say it. I care about you more than anything, Scully. You're….you're everything to me. My life would be empty without you. If you had died, I wouldn't have wanted to live either. What I'm trying to say is…" He looked deep into her eyes. "I love you, Scully."

Scully found herself at a loss for words. "I…" At this point it was like the English language was a foreign thing to her much less language in general.

"Don't…don't say anything. You don't have to tell me if you feel the same way or not. It doesn't matter to me. I just…I had to tell you. The reason I was so upset about what Jeremy did to you was because of what I feel for you. This….bastard nearly took away the one person I love. And you would have died without me ever telling you. That…is what hurt me the most. But then to hear that he had violated you…taken something that wasn't his. It…it destroyed me."

"He may have done that but that doesn't mean that he defeated me. You taught me that, remember? You said that I had the most courage of anyone you had ever seen. I believe that." She placed her hand over his. "And now so do you. We can't be at each other's throats like this. It's a terrible thing that happened we both can't deny that. But…we both need to move on and be strong. And I don't know about you…but I can't do this alone. You told me in your hallway when I was ready to quit that you didn't want to go it alone. Now I'm asking the same of you. I can't….honestly admit the same confession you did to me. But I promise you that if that time comes, I will tell you. But I don't want you to think that I don't care deeply for you because I do. It's just that with the _L _word…"

"Scully, it's ok. I understand." He caressed her hair, tucking it behind her ears. "I'm just glad I could tell you. But I never want to do anything to make you uncomfortable."

"You could never do that, Mulder." Scully answered with a soft smile.

Mulder reached forward and kissed her forehead tenderly. "I'm sorry about what I said to you. It's just that a bastard like that deserves the most horrible punishment possible."

She leaned her head on his shoulder. "Sometimes justice isn't fair. But there is one thing I know."

"What's that?" He asked as he picked up strands of her hair between his fingers.

"Well, Melissa used to believe in something called karma. Do you know what that is?"

"Yeah, I think so. It has to do with how you get back what you give or something?"

Scully gave a small giggle. "You're close. It basically means that whatever action you perform whether it be of good or bad intention that it will come back to you three times that. Or…something close to that. Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that Jeremy will pay in the afterlife for what he did in this one. He will pay for his crimes."

"Yeah but I just wish I was there to see it." He kissed the side of her face. "Hey, you still haven't told me about what happened in the hospital bathroom and the tub."

"And you still owe me a dinner."

"What? Oh shit! I forgot!" Mulder put his hand to his forehead. "So much for your gourmet meal."

"Actually I think pizza sounds pretty good."

"Half pepperoni and half veggie?"

"Ooohh, you know what I like." She replied with a coy smile.

"You've been hanging around me too long."

"Well, I don't think that's such a bad thing."

Mulder laughed. "All right we have pizza and Coke." He noticed her giving him a look. "Ok, DIET Coke. And then you tell me about what happened to you in the bathrooms all right?"

"Sounds good. I can talk better on a full stomach."

"Here. Let me help you up." Mulder leaned down and put his arms under Scully's before pulling her up. He helped steady her on her feet and realized just how close they were to one another. "Scully?"

"Yes, Mulder?"

"I know this may sound childish but…may I kiss you?"

A smile spread across her face. "I don't think a small kiss would hurt."

Mulder returned her smile and then slowly leaned down to her face. He closed his eyes and then closed the gap between them with a gentle kiss. He had just confessed his love for her and now he was tasting her lips! And even though the moment was brief, it would be forever etched in his memory. And it was more wonderful than he could have imagined. He reluctantly pulled back as he didn't want to push things. "Well?"

Scully tilted her head slightly. "I would say that was worth waiting for."

Mulder grinned. "Me too. You want to call in the pizza while I uh…take care of the kitchen?"

"The garbage bags are in the bottom left cupboard. Oh and uh don't forget to disinfect the counter where you had the food on."

Mulder teasingly saluted her. "I'm on it, boss." He turned and headed toward the kitchen. He then stopped and looked back. "Oh and I ah guess the apron worked."

"Apron?"

Mulder pointed to the apron. "Kiss the Cook?"

"Had I known you were wearing that I might have reconsidered. Where did you get that anyway?"

"Oh just something I picked up. And you really would have reconsidered?"

Scully walked up to him and nodded. "No."

"Why I outta…"

"Go clean the kitchen?" She quickly interjected. "Yes, I think that's a good idea." She walked away from Mulder and over to the phone. She pushed one of her memory buttons. "Yes, I can hold." She then looked toward the kitchen and a smile came to her face. She couldn't believe that Mulder had confessed his love for her. She wanted so much to return the gesture but there was still that small part of her that was afraid. She was still so uncertain about things at this time. And she kept wondering just how she was going to explain to Mulder what happened to her in the hospital bathroom and the bathtub when even SHE didn't know? At this point, it didn't matter to her. The entire trauma she had suffered these past few weeks was now behind her. She had confessed to Mulder everything she had been holding inside. And it was like he said, that her mind had decided that the time was finally right. Would it also tell her when the time was right about something else? She then heard a voice come back on the line. "Yes, I'd like one large pizza half pepperoni and the other half vegetarian please?"

"Shit!" Came a voice from the kitchen followed by a loud thump.

Scully shook her head at Mulder's obvious clumsiness trying to put the food in the garbage. "What? Oh yes and I need a liter of Diet Coke."

"Regular!"

Scully sighed. "And add a liter of regular Coke as well."


	12. Mulder's Theory

Scully had gone to her bedroom to put on some pajamas. As she stood in front of the mirror with her towel on, it dawned on her that Mulder had seen her naked in the bathroom. He had seen her naked and yet he had remained a perfect gentleman not taking advantage of the situation like most men would have. And he had told her that he loved her! She still couldn't believe he had admitted that. Normally, it seemed to be the woman who would say it first and the man would just basically cower in a corner. But this time it was the complete opposite; she was the one cowering instead of Mulder. And to be honest, she wasn't truly sure what she was so afraid of either. It wasn't that she hadn't thought of Mulder as more than a friend, she had. Many a lonely night had been spent in fantasyland about her partner but she would never admit it to him. Hell, she had a hard enough time admitting it to herself much less Mulder. The small kiss they had shared had been nice though. At least she had found out what she had been missing in that category. Fox "Spooky" Mulder could definitely kiss and she would have to tell her female agent friend Mandie that she was right on her suspicions. Wait, why would she tell Mandie that Fox Mulder was a good kisser? She would ask why and then she would have to tell her how she knew! Oh, that was the LAST thing she needed right now!

She removed the towel and stared at her naked body. It was true that she was petite but her body looked even thinner than usual. She had scars on her both from Jeremy's cuts and her surgery. If any man stared at her naked body now he would run! And now she couldn't help but wonder if Mulder had seen these marks as well. He couldn't have otherwise he wouldn't have admitted his love for her. For who could love someone who looked like a tic tac toe board? And that was the other reason she was afraid to admit her love for him. Tell him you love him, and then he sees your scars and changes his mind leaving you with your heart ripped open. It was true that Jeremy had left his mark on her now and she belonged to him even in death. Had Mulder approached her with his feelings before her traumatic experience with Jeremy, she might have had a different answer for him. But she knew now her life would never be the same. For now she felt like a wild filly that had just been broken in by rough hands. And her spirit just like that wild filly's had been broken as well. Jeremy had claimed her as his own.

"Scully!" Came Mulder's voice from the living room. "The pizza is here!"

She turned toward the closed bedroom door. "Ok, I'll…I'll be right there!" She called back. "I belong to him." She whispered before putting on her underwear and pajamas. "Even in death he has claimed me."

As Scully was turned away from the mirror, an apparition slowly appeared and began to take the form of Jeremy. His hand reached through the mirror and toward Scully's neck. His fingers were almost directly around her windpipe.

"Scully?" Mulder asked as he knocked on her door loudly. "You fall asleep in there or something?"

Scully quickly stepped away from the mirror just as the unseen fingers began to contort around her neck. She opened the bedroom door. "No, I didn't fall asleep. It just took me some time to get dressed in my pajamas. I'm sorry if I wasn't on your time schedule."

Mulder grinned. "Hey, I was just kidding around. I just didn't want the pizza to get cold."

"Oh, I should have known you were more concerned about the pizza getting cold instead of my well being." She smirked before putting on her robe and walking out of the bedroom.

Mulder walked after her. "Hey, I'm concerned for your well being too!"

The hands went back into the mirror. "Patience, patience." Jeremy whispered before he let out a laugh and disappeared again.

Scully stopped as she saw all the lights were out. The only thing giving off light were the candles placed around the room. "Oh, Mulder."

"Do you like it? I thought it might uh add something unique to our pizza dinner."

She glanced at the settings on the coffee table. "I want you to know I normally insist on eating at the dining room table."

"I'm sorry. I thought it might be nice to eat in front of the fireplace. Besides, I figured after your bath you might need to warm up a little."

Scully gave him a look. "Uh-huh."

"I did!" Mulder replied as he tried to look innocent. He cleared his throat and rubbed his hands together. "Anyway, let's eat, I'm starving!" He helped escort Scully to the couch.

"Wow, candle light, pizza and an escort to my couch? Not even my mother has done this much for me." Scully replied as she sat down.

"You mean your mother isn't attracted to you, Scully?" Mulder asked sarcastically as he took a seat next to her. He took a piece of veggie pizza and put it on a plate in front of her. "Here you go. Oh, oh and I added something special to the soda too."

"Dare I ask?" She asked as she put a napkin on her lap.

"Let's just say I found your bottle of rum in the cupboard."

"Mulder! That's MY cupboard!" Scully replied looking at him. "Were I normally in this situation I would kick your ass!" She watched as Mulder flinched. "But under the circumstances, thank you."

Mulder let out a sigh of relief. "Good. I just thought we could both use it, that's all." He raised his glass. "Should we make a toast?"

"Sure. Why not?" Scully answered as she raised her glass. "How about….to new beginnings?"

"Sounds good to me. Oh and the best damn pizza ever!" Mulder added before clinking his glass with hers.

Scully took a sip of her drink and made a face. "Damn, Mulder! How much rum did you put in here anyway?"

"Too much?"

"Too much? It feels like my mouth is on fire!"

"Ah, but that's the best kind, Scully." He took a sip of his drink. "Oh, yeah! Now THAT'S a rum and Coke!"

"Mulder, are you trying to get me drunk?"

Mulder nearly choked on his next sip. "Drunk?You? Why Scully, I'm surprised you would think such a thing! I'm insulted!" He paused. "I wouldn't make it that obvious."

She playfully hit him in the shoulder. "Yeah, well it takes a lot to get me drunk anyway."

"Really?" Mulder asked with an intrigued voice. "Well, that's a theory we'll have to put to test sometime. But first things first." He picked up a slice of pizza. "I want to know what happened to you in those bathrooms."

Scully sighed. Leave it to Mulder to ruin a perfectly good mood. "Mulder, do we have to?"

"Hey, you promised me that you would. And besides, Scully I want to make certain that whatever happened to you doesn't again." He took another bite of his pizza.

"All right. But I want you to know this may sound crazy."

Mulder let out a laugh. "Scully, this is ME you are talking to! Nothing you are going to tell me will sound crazy, believe me." He picked up his Coke. "So tell me what happened?"

"Well…I was standing in the bathroom getting dressed and…I was having flashbacks of what had happened to me. I was….looking at all the scars on my body and remembering where they came from. And then this….this draft came from no where."

Mulder looked at her as he continued to alternate between his pizza and Coke. "Go on."

Scully took a bite of her pizza. "I told myself that it was over and then….I heard this voice."

"What did it say?"

"It said _do you really think so my sweet, Dana_?" She swallowed. "I said it was all just in my head and related it to trauma. Then…the voice asked if it missed me and said that it had come back to finish what it had started. It told me to look in the mirror…"

Mulder was practically on the edge of his seat. "And what did you see?"

"I saw…I saw…" She took a breath. "I saw Jeremy…laughing at me."

"In the mirror?"

She nodded. "That's why I fainted."

Mulder's mind was already teeming with ideas but he wasn't about to share them with Scully just yet. "And what about here?"

"Well…I was in the bathroom in front of the mirror just kind of…thinking about things and then it started to crack like I told you. And then it just shattered."

"And what about the bathtub?"

"Well, I was lying back and…" She of course couldn't tell him what she was REALLY thinking about in that instance. _Yeah, tell him you were fantasizing about him giving you a sponge bath!_ "Relaxing." She finished. "When I heard a voice say Little Red and it asked me if I wanted to go for a dip? And then…the next thing I knew my legs were pulled out from under me and I was pushed under the water."

"You actually felt yourself being pulled and pushed?" Mulder asked before taking another drink of his Coke.

"Yes. It…it literally felt as if there was a hand holding me down. And I could hear this laughing…."

Mulder folded his hands. "And that's what happened?"

She nodded. "Everything that happened was just in my head, Mulder. I have been through a lot you know." She took another sip of her drink and a bite of pizza.

"That is true, Scully." He took a bite of pizza. "Now, you want to know what I think?"

"I'm almost afraid to ask but..yes."

"Ok, here goes. Based on what you told me earlier about your experience with Jeremy, he called you Little Red, right?"

"Yes."

"And based on the draft you felt, the cracked mirror and your feeling like you were being held down in the bathtub…"

Scully put up a hand. "Wait. Are you trying to tell me that was the ghost of Jeremy?"

"You see, you are like me, Scully."

Scully shook her head. "Oh, no, no. I am NOT going to believe this!" She slowly rose from her seat.

"Scully, wait." Mulder stood up from his seat. "Just listen to me, ok?"

"You're trying to tell me that I'm being haunted by the ghost of a serial killer, Mulder! Do you know how crazy that sounds?"

"Scully, everything you experienced and described in those scenarios fits the profile for spirit activity. The draft, the cracking of the mirror, you seeing his face and hearing his voice. You can't deny that happened to you. You just admitted it to me."

"I told you I thought it was all in my head, Mulder! I never said that I believed it was a ghost!"

"I know you don't believe that but will you just hear me out?" Mulder placed his hands on her shoulders. "Whatever this is has threatened your life, Scully. Whether it is a ghost or just some kind of strange energy it needs to be stopped. Even if you created this somehow like you think you did, it needs to be stopped before it succeeds in killing you. You were almost killed. You admit that right?"

"Yes."

"And I'm assuming you don't want to die?"

Scully glared at him. "What kind of question is that?"

"I just want to make certain you are clarifying all this before I move further."

"And just what do you propose then?"

"I know someone who deals with ghostly experiences."

"Do they have a proton backpack and go around trapping ghosts?" She asked sarcastically.

"Scully, I'm being serious. I know someone who can look into this. They can…evaluate it and then decide what to do."

"So…what we have to go see him?"

Mulder smiled as he pulled away from her. "Actually it's a HER and no we don't go see her. She comes to us."

"Since when do you know about female researchers in the paranormal, Mulder?" Scully asked as she crossed her arms.

"Hey, now I do occasionally have a life." He sighed. "I met her in a chat room, all right?"

Scully giggled. "You met her in an internet chat room? What was her ID? Sweet and Sassy?"

"Not THAT kind of chat room!" Mulder answered as he stepped away from her. "Give me some credit will ya? It was in a paranormal chat room."

"Ok, then….Spooky Sweet and Sassy." She noticed Mulder's temper flaring. "Ok, ok I'm sorry. You have to admit though that is what most of those chat rooms are."

"Yeah, well this one wasn't. Anyway we chatted and I found out that she did research on ghosts. She knows quite a bit actually. I've been wanting to go with her on a project but…well you know how busy I am."

"Oh that I do."

"Anyway, she gave me her number and told me to contact her anytime. I'm sure she would come over here and check things out."

"What's her name?"

"Her name?"

"Well, you had to at least get her name in these chats right?"

"Oh, yeah. Here name is Isabelle."

"Isabelle? Sounds like she should be a dancing gypsy or something."

Mulder sighed. "Look, don't make fun all right? She's….nice and very insightful. Hell, she even knows more things than I do."

"Imagine that."

"Look, Scully I don't want to screw around with this. Whatever this is has almost killed you. The last thing I want to do is wait around and see if it does." He walked over and took her hand. "So, will you let me call her?"

"Well…ok."

"Good."

"But can you do it in the morning or something? No offense Mulder but a ghost hunter is the LAST thing I want to deal with tonight. And besides…" She placed her hand on the side of his face. "I've got my protector for the night. And I don't plan to be alone."

Mulder swallowed. He could literally feel beads of sweat forming on his forehead "Uh….sure. Why…why don't we finish our dinner huh?" He quickly walked back to the couch and took his seat. "So….how about those Chicago Bears huh?" He knew he had to distract his mind as much from Scully as possible.

Scully sat in her seat and looked over at him. "Remember when I told you it took a lot to get me drunk and you wanted to test that theory of yours?"

Mulder looked back at her. "Uhhhh….yeah."

"It looks like you're getting your answer now." She replied leaning toward him.

"Scully, are you drunk?"

The next thing he knew Scully's lips were on his neck and she was kissing it. "Does it matter?"

Mulder took in deep breaths and closed his eyes as she explored his neck. "Uhhh…yeah. I…I think it does." He swallowed. It was obvious he had put WAY too much rum in Scully's _Diet Coke_. "Scully, I…I don't think this is such a good idea."

Scully pulled her head back and looked at him."Why not? You wanted to test your theory right?" She placed her lips near his. "Well now is your chance."

"I…" His words were then cut off as Scully took his lips in a fiery kiss.


	13. The Nightmare Returns

Mulder had been completely taken by surprise at Scully's kiss. And the kiss she gave him literally took his breath away. How often had he dreamed of this very moment? That he would be kissing those soft, pouty lips of his partner's? At first, he returned her kiss with fervor as he became caught up in the moment. But then as he tasted her, he could also taste the alcohol. It was then that had made a decision: he would not take her, not like this. He pulled back from her lips as he caught his breath. "Jesus, Scully I thought you were going to suck my breath right out of me."

Scully smiled. "Ever been kissed like that before, Mulder?"

"Literally felt like my life had been sucked out of me? Uh, no I will have to admit that was a first."

"Well, there's plenty more where that came from." Scully purred as she ran her hands down his chest.

Mulder closed his eyes and moaned. Her touching him was not helping his decision making in the least but he knew this was wrong. "Scully.." He breathed.

Scully looked him deep in the eyes. "Yes, Mulder?" She asked in a whisper.

"I never thought I would say this but…"

"What?" She asked as she edged close to his lips again.

Mulder swallowed. "Oh god." This was becoming more and more difficult for him and his brain was starting to shut down. _This is wrong. This is wrong. She's intoxicated!_ He could feel more sweat pouring from his face. "We…we shouldn't do this, Scully." He finally managed to blurt out.

"Why?" She asked as she placed her finger on his lips. "You can't tell me you haven't thought of this before? That you weren't thinking of us doing more than paperwork on the office desk? Of sneaking into my hotel room while I was asleep?"

"Scully, this…this isn't fair."

"So, I was right?"

"You…you have no idea."

"Then why don't you want to fulfill that fantasy of yours with me now?"

"Because you're….you're drunk, Scully."

"Drunk on Fox Mulder." She whispered as she placed her hand on his leg.

_Oh god she is real close to my crotch. I can't let her know how much this is turning me on!_ Mulder grabbed her hand and moved it off his leg. "No, Scully. I won't take advantage of you like this."

"Oh don't be such a baby." She cooed. "You know you want this." She started to kiss his neck slowly.

Mulder moaned and closed his eyes as he felt her lips on his sensitive spot. "Oh, god." He then opened his eyes and shook his head as he pulled away from her. "No. I won't do this, Scully. I'm sorry." He had to think of something quick to distract his attention from the seductive redhead in front of him before he overrode his moral side. "I…I need to call, Isabelle. Need to….make sure she can fit us in."

"Now?"

"Yeah. You…you just rest here on the couch. I'll be back." He moved off the couch quickly so he could hide the obvious bulge in his pants. What he needed was a cold bucket of water dumped over his head! But since he didn't have that, he had to use another tactic to get rid of his arousal._ Skinner. Think…think of Skinner naked. Oh god! Bad choice! Ok uhhh…think…think of that old librarian from that library in D.C. Wrinkled skin, big nose and a wart on her face._ He sighed as he slowly started to return to normal. "Ok, now let's take care of that call." He pulled out his cell and dialed a number on it as he walked over to a window. "Hello, Isabelle? This is Fox Mulder."

"Who?"

"Uhhh…." He cleared his throat. "Spooky Foxy?"

"Oh of course! How are you Fox?"

"Actually, I'm calling you as I think I have a little spirit problem."

"Oh? What kind of problem?"

"Well, there have been some pretty strange things happening to my partner."

"Your partner?"

"Yeah, my FBI partner. She's been…..seeing things and feeling things that to me are more than just ordinary."

"What kinds of things?"

"Well…she saw an image in a mirror and she…" Mulder stopped as he suddenly felt an arm snake around his waist. He then felt hot breath on his neck followed by lips. _Oh god_

"She what, Fox?"

"Uhhh…she…she was pushed underwater in a bathtub by something." He answered as he tried to take in breaths. He then felt lips on his ear followed by a nibbling on his lobe. "Ooooo."

"Fox? Are you ok?"

"What? Yeah, yeah I'm…I'm fine." Mulder answered as he closed his eyes. He felt a tongue licking across his neck and then some teeth slightly.

"Well, it definitely sounds to me like you have something there. Course I would need to do some investigating first. Can I come over there tomorrow?"

Mulder moaned. "Jesus, Scully."

"Fox?"

"Uhhh…yeah. Tomorrow. I'll…I'll call you with the address in the morning ok?"

"Sure. I'll talk to you then. Take care of yourself."

"You…you too." Mulder answered before hanging up his cell. He looked at Scully. "Scully, what you are doing to me….you are heading into dangerous waters."

"I like danger." She whispered as she ran her hand down his thigh.

"If…if we start…I can't guarantee I'll be able to stop." Mulder whispered, as he looked deep into her eyes.

"Who says that I want you to?" Scully answered as she ran her hand slowly over his crotch.

Mulder tossed his cell to the floor and then grabbed Scully, pulling her to his face roughly. He paused a moment before taking her lips in a passionate kiss. It was clear his morality was now out the window but at this point he didn't care. He became more aroused as he heard Scully's moans and pushed his tongue into her mouth. He joined her moans, as he tasted the rum from within her warm mouth. It was truly intoxicating him as he pushed himself against her.

Scully gasped as she felt Mulder so close to her and she could feel his hardness through his jeans. Her heartbeat and breaths quickened as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Her tongue connected with his as she rubbed her chest against him. Her nipples tingled as she ran them up and down his chest. She then felt Mulder's hand caressing her bottom and moaned.She returned the gesture by sliding her hand down from his neck and to his own bottom.

Feeling her hands on his backside was just too much. He pulled back from her kiss. "Bedroom." He replied huskily before picking her up in his arms. He reached forward and reconnected with her lips as he carried her toward the bedroom. His fingers played up and down her back gently as he made his way into the room. He then carefully laid her down on the bed and watched as her red hair sprawled onto the sheets. He took his hand and placed it on the side of her face. "You're so beautiful, Scully."

"Make love to me, Mulder." She whispered as she looked back at him.

"Are you sure? I mean…what you went through with Jeremy. I don't want to…"

Scully cupped his face and then kissed him passionately, pulling him on top of her. She moaned as she felt Mulder's lips move from her lips to her neck. She craned her neck and took in breaths. "Mmmm….Mulder."

Mulder moved his lips to her ear as he reached his hands down and started to unbutton her pajama top. He placed his hand inside of her top and began to caress the top part of her breast exposed from her bra. He then finished unbuttoning her top and opened it. Placing his lips on her chest he started to kiss it slowly, alternating with lips and tongue.

"Yes, Mulder." Scully whispered.

As he continued to explore her chest, his hand wandered slowly down her side and came to rest on the button to her pajama bottoms. He paused a moment and then started to undo her pants as he pushed his mouth into her cup and teased her nipple with his tongue.

"Mmmm…yes." She moaned as she shifted her body. She could feel his hands in her pants and moving under her panties.

"_You're so tight. I would have expected a whore to be much looser."_

Her eyes shot open as she heard the voice in her head.

"_Does this excite you?"_

And at that moment it all came back to her. She could see Jeremy leering at her. Feel him roughly moving his hands over her body. Feel him pushing his finger and then himself inside of her. She could even smell his body and hot breath from his mouth.

"Oh, Scully." Mulder moaned as he caressed her pink lips with his finger.

Scully jerked away from him. "Don't touch me!"

Mulder looked back at her confused. "Scully? What's…what's wrong?"

"I don't belong to you!" She screamed. "Why can't you just leave me alone!" All she could see in her mind was Jeremy as she looked at Mulder. She scooted away from Mulder and to the end of the bed where she picked up her gun. "Keep away from me!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa take it easy, Scully. It's ok." He slowly reached a hand out to her. "It's me, It's Mulder."

"No, you're not! You're lying!" She yelled as she pointed the gun at him.

"Scully, who else would I be?" Mulder asked as he steadied his hand.

"I'm not your sweet, Dana!"

It then dawned on Mulder what was happening. "Oh god. Scully, I'm not Jeremy. Jeremy isn't here. He's…he's just in your mind. Please put the gun down."

"Why can't you just die!" Scully answered as her hands started to shake. "I'll kill you and make sure you NEVER come back again!" She cocked the gun.

Mulder knew he had to think fast if he was going to prevent himself from being a victim of a shooting. He took a breath and then looked toward her. "I remember the first day you walked into my office wearing that grey tweed suit of yours. At first I thought you were some stuck up preppy but I soon found out you were more than that. I thought you had been sent to spy on me but I soon found out differently. I found out that you were the only one I could trust, Scully." He paused. "And when you were taken from me….those months were the longest of my life. I was willing to do anything to make sure that you were brought back to me. And when you were stricken with cancer…I had even thought of going to the other side just to save you. I didn't care about what happened to me, just you. I figured I was such a loser it was only fair that I should die and you should live." He sighed. "All I want to do is help you, Scully. I want to help you live through what has happened to you. I want to make certain that you are able to move on with your life. And I'll be with you through this Scully for as long as it takes. I made that promise to you and I intend to keep it. You're…you're my one in five billion remember? Please…please don't let him do this to us, Scully. Fight him."

Scully's hands slowly lowered as tears flowed down her face. "Mulder? Oh…oh god." She dropped the gun on the bed as she laid her head back and sobbed.

Mulder came forward and placed his arms around her. "Sssshhhh…it's ok, Scully." He replied as he pulled her to him gently. "We're going to work through this, I promise."

"I…I thought I was over it."

He kissed the top of her head. "Scully, you can't expect yourself to get over something like that so quickly. It's…it's going to take time. What happened to you…is horrific and no person could ever be expected to recover from it that fast."

Scully turned her head to the side as she laid it on his chest. "What am I going to do? I can't just keep living this every time I'm being intimate with you. I know…how badly you wanted it, Mulder." She sniffled. "And I ruined it for you."

"Hey, hey now stop saying that." Mulder kissed her forehead. "That's not true. You didn't ruin anything for me. Hell, I didn't even want to in the first place, remember?"

"Why?"

"Well, it's like I said…you were drunk and I didn't want to take advantage of you. I always said…that the first time I made love with you, I wanted it to be special. I wanted it be natural with no alcohol involved. That way I would know it was something that we both wanted. That's why I didn't want to, Scully."

"So…why did you change your mind?"

"Let's just say when you have a sexy redhead kissing you and running her hands down your leg while you are on a cell call, it makes you lose concentration. Not to mention I am a man and only human when it comes to my hormones."

"Well, I'm sorry if I got you all worked up for nothing." Scully answered as she lowered her head.

"Hey." Mulder answered as he took his hand and raised her head. "Listen to me. It's ok that we stopped. I'm not mad at all. The last thing I want you to feel is uncomfortable, Scully. And…I'm willing to wait for as long as it takes for you to be. I'm just content having you with me. Sex to me is a minor thing and can wait. And besides…" He leaned toward her. "Sometimes anticipation is better so that when it does happen, it makes the wait worth while."

"Thank you, Mulder. I was afraid you would hate me after this."

Mulder chuckled. "Hate you? Scully, if anything this experience has shown me how much I really care and love you. I had the chance to make love with you and I didn't. Had I been with any other woman, I would have jumped at the chance. But…I didn't want to hurt you in any way. And…the guilt I would have felt knowing I took advantage of you would always haunt me. And I also didn't want the same thing to happen to you."

"You truly are a wonderful friend to me, Mulder."

"Hey, what are friends for? And as for helping you….I know a friend of mine who might be able to help. He's a psychologist and does hypnotic regression."

"Mulder, I've tried that before and…"

"I know it's scary, Scully. But the only way you are going to get through this completely is to let out these feelings of yours. Once you do that, you'll be able to release this hold that Jeremy has on you."

"You…you really think so?"

"I do. I'll call him tomorrow and see about getting you in ok?"

"Ok."

"And I've got Isabelle coming over tomorrow too."

"She is?"

"Yep. And in the meantime, I think someone should get some sleep."

"What about dinner?"

"I'll take care of the dinner remnants." He pulled back the covers and gently eased her into the bed. "You sleep."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive." He kissed her cheek tenderly. "Now sleep."

"If I need you…"

"I'll be here in a flash, don't you worry. I'll just be right outside ok?"

Scully sat up."But…"

He placed his finger on her lips. "Ah, ah. Now sleep." He gently lowered her back down on the bed. He then hummed to her as he caressed her hair. "Sleep, Dana." He whispered as he watched her eyes close. Seeing that she was starting to fall asleep, he gave her one last kiss on the cheek. He then quietly pulled away from her and headed to the door. He turned and glanced at her sleeping form on the bed. He then smiled before leaving and closing the door behind him.


	14. Strangers In The Night?

Mulder went to the kitchen and prepared a bowl of potato chips. He was anything but tired and planned to do a little research on his own. He was glad that he had picked up some various junk food choices for he knew that Scully herself would never hoard such items in her apartment. After taking care of the chips he opened up the fridge and took out a thing of sour cream and onion dip. He also grabbed a bottle of beer and placed them both on the counter. He took a look at the items in front of him. "Ah, now THAT'S a good combo!" He placed the sour cream on top of the bowl of chips and grabbed the beer bottle with his other hand before heading into the living room.

Walking over to a table he set his items in front of Scully's laptop. This was something that he always did when he was at his own computer at home. He had to admit it was nice to have more room since a laptop didn't take up as much space as a personal computer. "Yep, more room to spread the junk food items out." He replied as he set the chips down along with the sour cream. He took a swig from his beer bottle as he turned on the laptop. "Ok, so far it's just like my computer." He then glanced down at the keyboard. "Ok, so maybe it isn't entirely. Where the hell is the mouse?" His hands fumbled around the laptop. "What the hell kind of computer doesn't have a mouse?" The ringing of his cell then interrupted his exploration. He reached into his pocket and pulled it out before answering. "Hello?"

"Mulder, it's Skinner."

"Oh hey how's it going Skin man?"

"You know I hate it when you call me that!"

"Yeah but this time I can get away with it cause you aren't my superior anymore." Mulder answered as he grinned. "Anyway, what's up?"

* * *

Scully lay in her bed clutching her pillow as she slept. She slept peacefully for once unlike her previous days. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that she was sleeping in her own bed for once instead of a hospital one. She never thought it was possible to miss a bed that much but now she did. It also made her feel secure to know that Mulder was just outside the door. As she slept, her mind kept replaying what had happened in the living room. The way his lips had felt on hers. His hands brushing over her bare skin. How wonderful it felt when his tongue was exploring her mouth. The way his hands played with her breast and his tongue flicked over her nipple. A smile crept across her face as the vivid movie continued in her mind. If only he had known how much she didn't want him to stop. 

Inside the bedroom a mist began to form casting an almost foggy look over everything. The mist began to swirl slightly until it finally began to take a form. The mist continued to conglomerate until the end result became a human shape. Jeremy stood at the end of the bed and gave an evil smile. "Strangers in the night, exchanging glances." He sang softly. "Although we are not strangers are we my sweet, Dana?" He asked as he looked down at Scully's sleeping form. He then chuckled slightly before he disappeared and was once again replaced by mist. The mist moved to the side of the bed and slowly pulled the sheets away from the bed.

* * *

"I was just calling to see how Agent Scully was doing." Skinner answered. 

Mulder glanced at his watch. "Any particular reason why you're calling after midnight?"

"Mulder, you know how things are right now. If the FBI found out that we were conversing, it would make things worse. I'm calling you when there is no one else around."

"Ok, I get your point." Mulder answered before taking a chip into his mouth.

"Since you mentioned about it being midnight, I guess I should ask just why you are still up?"

"You could say that things here have been anything but dull."

"Meaning?"

"Let's just say that I don't need to be working on the X-Files because I have one right here." Mulder answered before eating another chip.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, first things first. I'm at a laptop and haven't used one in quite some time. Can you tell me where the hell the damn mouse is?" Mulder asked. "You give me that info and I might be able to elaborate a little more on what's going on here." He took a sip of his beer.

"The mouse is at the bottom of the laptop." Skinner answered. "It's large and square and should have two rectangles at the bottom of it. That is if Agent Scully has the same kind of laptop that's normal. In order to move the mouse you move your finger over it."

Mulder looked down at the laptop and found the item that Skinner was describing. He placed his finger on it and watched as the cursor moved. "Well, I'll be a son-of-a-bitch!" He studied the mouse some more. "Uhhh…how do you get it to click on something? You know…get to go to something?"

"Click on the left part of the mouse." Skinner answered.

Mulder did as instructed and watched as it did what he needed. "Ah, there we go. It's all starting to come back to me now. You see, Scully started bring her laptop for field assignments since mine meant with an unfortunate accident."

"Accident?"

"Let's just say there's so much hitting a laptop can take before it stops working." Mulder answered as he went to a search engine and typed in some key words. "Ok, let's do some research."

"Care to tell me what you're looking up?"

"Actually, I'm looking up hauntings and ghosts."

Skinner let out a laugh. "Please, tell me you are kidding!"

"I'm afraid not, Skin man." Mulder cleared his throat. "Sorry, I mean Skinner. There has been some unusual activity that does not warrant normality."

"Like what?"

* * *

The mist slowly crept up Scully's leg and started to pull down her pants. 

"Mmmmm." Scully moaned in her sleep. She could feel a breeze brush across her now bare legs and panties. She shifted back and forth as she moaned once again. "Mulder, yes."

The mist moved up to her pajama top and started to undo the buttons one by one until her chest was exposed.

Scully craned her neck as she felt lips slowly trailing across her bare breast. A gasp escaped her as she then felt a tongue playing with her nipple. "Oh god, Mulder!" She could feel hands moving sensually down her body and she moaned as she arched her back. She then felt her panties being slid down her legs ever so gradually. "Yes, take me, Mulder. I'm ready now." She whispered.

* * *

"Well, I didn't tell you but when I went to pick her up at the hospital, she saw something in a mirror." 

"Something? What?"

"Well, she claimed that she saw Jeremy Reinsfeld. And at first I thought she was just stressed out from her ordeal."

"But..something happened later to tell you that wasn't the case?"

Mulder looked at the laptop screen and clicked on something in the top corner. "Yeah she was taking a bath here and something tried to drown her."

"What?"

"She said that when she was in the bathtub that it felt like something was holding her under the water. And when I heard her screaming I tried to get in the bathroom and I couldn't." He read a paragraph on the screen as he continued to speak. "And the mirror also mysteriously cracked in the bathroom before it happened."

"And just what do you think this is? A ghost?"

"Why not?"

Skinner sighed. "Mulder, you know what Agent Scully has been through. Her mind is not mentally stable right now. She's going to need time. She'll probably be reliving these traumatic events for who knows how long?"

"Yeah, I was thinking along those same lines earlier too. But it appears my research is proving otherwise." He paused. "Signs of spiritual activity include objects disappearing and possible objects breaking. Mirrors are known to crack and possibly shatter…"

"Mulder…"

"There are documented cases of spirits haunting an individual." Mulder continued as he read the paragraph. "One instance has to do with a loved one who refuses to believe they are dead and chooses to hold on to them. This type of situation never allows the dead person to rest and causes them to wander. This particular kind is usually not with bad intentions." He paused. "Although hauntings are usually connected with an area, usually a house. Hauntings of individuals are very rare and usually turn out to be a poltergeist."

"There you go, Mulder. Agent Scully is certainly NOT a house."

"But she said she heard his voice…"

"Like I said, Mulder its stress." Skinner answered. "And please tell me you don't intend to come to the conclusion that Agent Scully is being haunted based on that?"

"Actually, I have an expert coming over tomorrow to see if she can substantiate that."

"She?"

"Yeah, she's someone who knows a little more about the spirit world than I do. Hard to believe isn't it?"

"Look, just promise me that you'll be careful with this ok? Agent Scully has been through enough as it is. The last thing you want to do is be lured into something that will worsen her condition."

"Believe me, the last thing I would want to do is hurt her." Mulder answered.

"Fair enough. I'll try and call you again in a few days. Take care of yourself and Agent Scully."

"I will. Talk to you soon and take care yourself." Mulder hung up his cell and went back to his chips and dip as he continued to read. "When hauntings do occur it is usually due to some type of violent event which happened in that particular place." He took a sip of his beer. "The..spirit is attached to a particular area because it has unfinished business. This can also hold true in the rare cases of individual hauntings." Mulder raised his head. "Unfinished business."

* * *

Scully continued to moan and writhe on the bed as she felt her body being touched. She then heard some humming in her ear. 

"What were the chances we'd be making love?" Jeremy sang softly as he placed his hand between Scully's legs. "Mmmmm….yes my sweet, Dana."

Scully gasped as she felt her pink lips being caressed. Her eyes then shot open as her brain registered the last words uttered. She looked up not to see the man who had touched her earlier but one who already had and was the cause of all her pain. "No." She whispered.

"Hello my sweet, Dana. Did you think that I had gone? Oh no I can't do that. You see I have some unfinished business." Jeremy gave her an evil smile and licked his lips. "We were so rudely interrupted before, weren't we?"

Scully shook her head as her heart raced. "No, this…this isn't happening. It's….it's just a dream."

"You were the one who escaped me. And I just can't allow that."

"Mulder!" Scully screamed as she sat up. She then felt her throat being constricted by some unseen force as she was pushed back down on the bed. She gasped as she tried desperately to breathe.

"You do remember what I said about how I hate to hear others scream, don't you? How quickly you forget." Jeremy looked up and down her body. "It appears some of your scaring has healed. But no matter, I'm sure I can give you some new ones to take their place. Can't I my sweet Dana?" He positioned himself above her and spread her legs. "And this time there will be no one to stop me. The pain I will give you shall be much more than our little scene in my bedroom. And I shall give it to you again and again until you beg me to stop. And when I am through….should you survive you will never want another man to touch you again. Not even your precious Mulder. For as I told you before….you are mine sweet, Dana. And no one else shall ever have you."

Tears trickled down Scully's cheeks as she once again felt Jeremy between her legs.She lay there completely paralyzed unable to prevent the pain coursing through her. She slowly started to imagine herself floating on water until she started to slowly sink and let the abyss consume her. She never even heard the splitting and cracking of her bedroom door as it was kicked in.

Mulder watched in horror as some unseen presence pushed Scully up into the headboard. "Scully!" He could see mysterious bruises forming on her wrists where it showed something was holding her down. He looked desperately around the room and found a crucifix in the corner. He ran and picked it up before heading toward the bed. "In the name of God I demand that you let her go!" He screamed. He then began to recite any kind of biblical reference he could think of ranging from the Lord's Prayer to a Catholic one. He observed as Scully was levitated off the bed for a few moments and then sent crashing back down to the bed. He ran up to her limp body and noticed blood on the sheets. "Oh god!Scully!" He climbed onto the bed and cradled her head. He then looked back up. "You son-of-a-bitch! I'll get you for this!I'll send your soul to burn in hell forever!" He looked back down at Scully who still had not stirred. "Scully?" He brought her to his chest and kissed the top of her forehead. "Oh god, I should have never left you alone. I'm…I'm so sorry!" He then raised his head as he heard a pounding at the door. He gently laid Scully back down on the bed as he went to answer it He opened the door and found an older man standing on the other side of it. "Yes?Can…can I help you?"

"Is everything all right?I….I thought I heard a scream and the sound of someone being slammed against the wall."

"Who are you?"

"Charles Madley, I live on the other side." He pointed down the hall. "Is Miss Scully ok? I mean…I know she's been through a lot with what happened."

Once Mulder realized this man did not pose a threat, he knew what he had to do. "Actually, no Miss Scully is not all right. She….had an accident. I need you to call 911 for me. Can you do that?"

"Well…sure but…"

"Please just do what I'm asking you?" Mulder asked in a pleading voice.

Charles nodded. "All…all right. I'll do it now." He then left and quickly ran back down the hallway.

Once Charles had left, Mulder closed the door and immediately headed back to the bedroom. Scully was exactly in the same spot he had left her and still had not moved. He sighed and ran his hands through his hair still not believing what he had walked into just moments before. It didn't take him much thinking to realize what had just happened to Scully. The bruises on her wrists and the vaginal bleeding told him enough. He had read about cases of entity rape but had never been a witness to one. And now after seeing one he prayed he would never see it again. Yet, it had all stopped once he started reciting the Lord's Prayer and the Catholic one he had learned a long time ago. Why? And then it dawned on him what else he had had with him….a cross!

He quickly examined Scully's neck and found it bare. His thoughts drifted back to each time that she had been attacked including when Jeremy was alive. She hadn't been wearing her cross necklace had she? He knew she hadn't when she was undercover and in the hospital….no he didn't remember seeing it. And she didn't have it on when she was in the bathtub….that had to be it! He rose up from the bed and went to Scully's dresser where he found the cross necklace hanging down from a jewelry box. He wasted no time in carefully picking it up. He held it up to the light and watched as the cross shined and twirled. It almost seemed like it was sending out some kind of beam to him. Or was it a sign? Even if it wasn't, he had to try! If she was going to be in the hospital alone she had to have something to keep her safe.

Mulder walked back over to the bed and gently lifted Scully's head. He then took the necklace and placed it around her neck. "This will protect you from him, Scully. I'll bet you feel like I'm protecting you from a vampire huh?" He had to be humorous in a situation like this or he would go crazy. He carefully closed the clasp and let the cross hang down her neck. He could already hear the sirens outside from the ambulance and knew he didn't have a lot of time. "I promise you I will find a way to defeat him, Scully. I'm going to make it so that bastard can never hurt you again." He closed his eyes and rested his head on her chest as he cried.

The door to Scully's apartment was opened and two paramedics came running in with a wheeled gurney. They quickly made their way back to the bedroom where they found Mulder sobbing over Scully. "Sir, what happened here?" One of the paramedics asked. "Sir?"

At this point Mulder truly didn't know what to tell them. If he told them the real truth, they would send for another ambulance to come and take him away in a straight jacket. So, he decided to tell them half the truth. "She….she was raped." He whispered.

"Raped?" The other paramedic replied. "How long ago did this happen?"

"Not..not long." Mulder answered in a monotone voice.

"All right, Sir I need you to move away from her so we can get her into the gurney." The paramedic watched as Mulder remained stationary. "Sir, we need to get her to a hospital!"

Mulder nodded and moved reluctantly away from Scully. The remnants of Scully's pajamas were strewn in a pile at the edge of the bed. He watched as the two paramedics took a sheet and wrapped her gently in it. They then placed her onto the wheeled gurney and took her out of the bedroom. For the second time, Mulder watched as his love was carried out in a gurney. Yes, he referred to her in that aspect now. But now he began to wonder if they would ever get that chance to be lovers? It was true that Scully had not admitted her love for him but he sensed it might be a matter of time. If there was one thing he was certain of at this very minute, it was that a ghost was NOT going to come between he and the woman he loved. He had defeated him in this life and now he would do whatever it took to continue that in the afterlife.

* * *

**NOTE: **I just wanted to take this time to thank those of you have been reading this fic!Your reviews do truly help me to continue with it each week. And I have to admit when I write these chapters they draw me in as well!So, please continue with your reviews and there will be more to come!Oh and yes I know poor Scully got hurt in this chapter again but believe me it was needed for the storyline. I promise it will lessen for her 


	15. Isabelle and The Banishment

For the second time in a month, Mulder stood looking through a hospital room window at Scully lying in a bed. And for a second time, he felt responsible even though he had done nothing physical to her. He had left her alone and that was enough for him to know. And the reason she was lying in that bed again was because of one person…Jeremy. Every time he said or thought that name it made him clench his fist. He couldn't believe that a person was truly capable of evil….until now. Jeremy was not one of those serial killers who did their deeds because of child molestation or abuse. No, Jeremy killed and violated because he liked it. And if it was true that those who were evil in life passed on that same personality to the afterlife, it certainly applied here. But this was not just some enemy he could fight physically, this was some spiritual force! How could he possibly fight that? How could he fight something he couldn't even see?

"Mulder?"

Mulder turned to see Skinner standing next to him. He chuckled. "Why doesn't it surprise me that you are here?"

"She is an Agent under my supervision, Mulder." Skinner answered. "Any kind of activity or hospitalization I am notified of." He paused. "Though I must admit I didn't expect her to be admitted a second time for this. Especially considering that the man who did it the first time is dead. Nor did I expect to hear that the person who was with her when it happened was you."

"Sir, I didn't rape her."

"I just spoke with the doctor, Mulder and he said that Agent Scully was raped! Are you trying to dispute that?"

"Sir, I'm not trying to dispute that she was raped!" Mulder answered back angrily. "What I AM trying to dispute is that you think I did it!" He paused. "How could you possibly think after everything I have been through with her, after the promise I made that I would do something as horrible as this!"

"Then you explain to me why she has vaginal tearing and all the signs of a rape!"

Mulder sighed. "If I told you, you wouldn't believe me."

"Try me."

"Scully was raped by an entity."

Skinner tilted his head. "I'm sorry. She was what?"

"She was raped by a ghost, Sir."

Skinner rubbed the area between his temples. "You're telling me that you didn't rape her but that a ghost did?"

Mulder nodded. "Jeremy."

Skinner chuckled and put up his hands. "Oh, I don't have time for this shit!" He turned and started to walk away.

"She had vaginal tearing but there was no semen found am I right? She had bruises and bite marks on her thighs? Had red marks on her hands showing she had been held down?"

Skinner stopped and turned back around. "How did you know about the semen?"

"Because those are all signs of entity rape, Sir. If a woman is normally raped there are signs of semen but how can there be when the man is not alive? When he has no physical substance inside of him?" Mulder looked down. "I saw him do it, Sir. I…I opened the door and saw him slamming Scully against the headboard. I could see red marks on her wrists and bruises forming on her body. Marks from an invisible assailant that was there with her. And…" A tear trickled down his cheek. "There was nothing I could do. I can still see the blood on the sheets…"

"Mulder, even should that be true, it's not going to hold up in a court of law."

Mulder raised his head. "Court of law? Sir, you can't press charges against me for something I didn't do!"

"It's not my choice, Mulder. When the paramedics arrived YOU were the only one in the bedroom. You told them NOTHING about another suspect. All you said was that she had been raped. I would say that makes you look pretty guilty in anyone's eyes at this point. And the testimony that the ghost of a dead serial killer did this is NOT going to hold up!"

Mulder ran his hands through his hair. "Wait, Scully can tell you, I didn't do it. She'll back me up."

"Right now she is unconscious, Mulder. The doctors don't know when she'll recover."

Mulder put his hand into a fist and punched a wall in frustration. "Dammit! Why is this shit happening to me? Why won't he leave her the fuck alone!" He turned away from Skinner and started to walk down the hall.

"Where are you going?"

Mulder turned back around. "To prove my innocence and get the REAL perpetrator here!"

Skinner walked up to him. "You leave town and you'll look even more guilty!"

"Who say's I'm leaving town? You know Scully's apartment address right? Cause that's where I'll be. If you need to send me an arrest warrant THAT'S where you'll find me." He then angrily stormed off.

* * *

Mulder sat on Scully's couch as he drank a beer. A smile trickled across his face as he remembered their make-out session here just last night. How her lips tasted and how she moaned when he touched her. It was like heaven to him but he was just happy being with her. The way her smile could light up a room and her giggle could make him laugh. Even the way she drank her rum and Coke made him smile. But now he was all alone in her apartment and she was lying comatose in a hospital bed. He took another drink of beer and then heard a knock at the door. He climbed off the couch and headed to the door. Glancing through the peephole he could see a young dark-haired woman standing with some kind of bag. He opened the door. "Isabelle?"

"Fox." She held out her hand to him. "So glad to finally meet you."

Mulder shook her hand. "Likewise. Please, come in." He gestured to the door.

"Thank you." Isabelle answered with a smile before walking in the door. "Where can I set up my things?"

Mulder closed the door. "Huh? Oh uhhhh…anywhere should be fine."

"All right." Isabelle reached into her bag and took out some candles. She then started to place them in various areas around the room. "Is your friend, Dana here?"

"No. She uh…she had to be taken to the hospital unexpectedly last night."

Isabelle raised her head as she blew out a match from lighting some candles. "Oh my god, is she all right?"

"She's…unconscious right now. That's the reason I called you over here so quickly, Isabelle." He looked over at her. "There is something evil in this apartment, Isabelle. Something that will stop at nothing to hurt her."

"You think there is just something in this apartment or is it something to do with her?"

Mulder shook his head. "I…I don't know anymore. Whatever it is, I just want it to stop."

Isabelle pulled out a book. "Well, why don't you tell me why you think this is spiritually related again?"

"Well…Scully saw an image in a mirror. She….was almost drowned by something in the bathroom. And…" He closed his eyes tightly. "She was…raped by something in the bedroom."

Isabelle looked at Mulder with wide eyes. "Raped?"

Mulder nodded. "Yeah, I know because I was there."

"Well….why don't we start with first things first. Why don't you take me to the bathroom and the bedroom? I'll see what I pick up alright?"

Mulder nodded. "Sure, follow me." He led Isabelle to the bathroom. "Well, here's the bathroom. You can see how the mirror is all shattered. Mind the glass."

Isabelle stepped into the bathroom being careful of the glass on the floor. "You say this mirror just shattered?" She asked as she started to examine it.

"Yeah. Scully said she was looking into it and it just started to crack. The next thing she knew it just shattered but she luckily wasn't cut. Sure scared the hell out of me though. It sounded just like a gun shot."

"Well, you're lucky she didn't get cut judging by this. This…crack is definitely indicative that a human did not do it. Had it been done by someone, there would be more strain on the crack." She pointed to it to show Mulder. "See where this crack begins? There would be more coming down from the crack had this been done by a human."

"Wow, I'm impressed. Didn't realize a paranormal researcher was so…"

"Knowledgeable?" Isabelle asked with a grin. "Well, one needs to know the scientific side of everything as well as the paranormal. That way things can be ruled out before they are classified in the paranormal. Many times the explanation turns out to be of the scientific nature. Not ALWAYS of course but…"

Mulder grinned. "You remind me a lot of Scully in some ways."

Isabelle tilted her head. "Is that good?"

"Oh yeah." He cleared his throat. "So the mirror definitely a sign of spiritual activity right?"

Isabelle turned her attention back to the mirror. "What? Oh yes, it…it definitely is." She pointed to the tub. "That's the bathtub?"

"Yes."

Isabelle walked over to the tub. "Well, there doesn't appear to be any indications of any kind of ectoplasmic residue." She looked back at Mulder. "How about the bedroom?"

"Right this way." Mulder led Isabelle from the bathroom to Scully's bedroom. He opened the door and stepped aside.

Isabelle smiled before she stepped inside. Her smile then faded as soon as she crossed the threshold. Chills began to run up and down her spine. She swallowed as she felt her heart racing. "Evil…."

"Isabelle?"

"The spirit who is here…pure evil." She paused. "In his life he was a most evil man."

"You can say that again." Mulder muttered.

Isabelle stepped toward the bed. "My god…what he did to her." She gasped. "The pain she is feeling. Oh god he won't stop!" She closed her eyes tightly.

"Why is he doing this, Isabelle?"

Isabelle took in a breath as she trembled. "She's…the one who escaped him. He…owns her and will never let her go."

"How do we stop him, Isabelle?"

Isabelle took in a deep breath and then started to choke.

"Isabelle?" Mulder stepped toward her and was pushed against the wall. He could feel all kinds of pain coursing through his body. He found some kind of force keeping him in place. He glanced toward Isabelle who was trembling violently. He was not about to let Jeremy win again. "Get away from her you bastard!" He then remembered what he had done to get him away from Scully. He started to recite _The Lord's Prayer_ as loud as he could. He felt the grip on him lessen until he was able to break free. He ran over to Isabelle and picked her up, carrying her quickly out of the bedroom. He then placed her gently on the couch. "Isabelle?" He could feel how cold her skin was and checked for a pulse. Finding nothing, he instantly started CPR. "Breathe dammit!"

After a few minutes, Isabelle began to gasp and choke. She opened her eyes and saw Mulder hovering above her.

"Hey." Mulder replied with a smile as he took her hand. "Welcome back."

Isabelle smiled back at him. "A nice thing to wake up to." She reached up and touched the side of his face, letting her long hair fall behind her.

Mulder swallowed as he felt his skin tingle from her touch. "Uh, Isabelle…I think there's something I forgot to tell you."

"What?" She asked as she ran her finger slowly down his face.

"Scully and I…we're more than friends. I'm….I'm sorry if I may have mislead you on that."

"Oh. Well it wouldn't be the first time that happened to me. Seems like all the good men are always taken." Isabelle pulled her hand away. "And we have a spirit to banish."

"You really think we can do this?"

Isabelle nodded. "I do. And you're going to help me." She looked back at him. "That is…if you intend to let me up?"

"Huh?" Mulder looked down at her lying underneath him. "Oh yeah, sure." He quickly moved off the couch. "So, what do you need me to do?"

Isabelle eased herself off the couch and walked over to a candle in the middle of the room. "I want you to make sure this candle remains lit at all times no matter what happens." She took a match and struck it, lighting the candle.

"Can I ask why?"

"Because that candle is what is going to send our evil spirit to the other side where he belongs. If that candle burns out then the portal is closed. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Just make sure it stays lit and you will do fine, Fox." Isabelle walked away from him and pulled out a book. "Now, this will do either of two things. It will either convince the spirit to cross over to the other side."

"Or…"

"Or…it will cause it to retaliate even more."

"I thought you said you could banish this thing?"

"Banishment is not one-hundred percent successful, Fox. You can't force a spirit to cross over. It has to want to do it on its own. And if you believe that you utter some words and the spirit has no choice then you have seen too many horror movies." She paused. "Are you ready?"

"Let's kick some evil spirit ass."

"Remember, you must make sure that the candle remains lit no matter what." She took a breath. "And be prepared because based on what I have seen and felt here something tells me he is going to put up quite a fight." She glanced down at the book and began to chant.

The room suddenly turned very cold followed by a large rushing of wind causing the candles in the room to flicker. Mulder instantly went over to the candle Isabelle had said to keep burning and shielded it from the oncoming onslaught of forceful air.

"Spirit of this realm, the time has come for you to pass from this world into the next. You're time is done here and you are ready to start anew in the afterlife." Isabelle outstretched her arms to the candle that Mulder was protecting. "Cross into the light where you shall find peace."

A wailing noise could be heard and Mulder watched in both fascination and horror as the figure of Jeremy appeared in front of him. "Long time no see, G-Man." He replied with an evil smile.

"Wipe that grin off your face cause I'm sending you straight to hell!A place where you will NEVER hurt Scully or anyone else again!"

Isabelle began to chant again. "There is peace and serenity in the light. All the answers to everything you have wanted to know are within. Walk to it and leave your pain behind."

Jeremy's smile faded as he slowly started to fade. "No!" He yelled as he went from a figure to mist. The wind increased in the room to an almost tornadic force.

Mulder winced as he felt the flame from the candle burn his hand. But he knew he couldn't let the candle go out no matter what. A little pain was enough to withstand to save Scully from Jeremy. He cried out in pain as the flames singed his skin.

Isabelle continued to chant as loud as she could through the roaring wind. The wind spiraled around the room, lifting Isabelle into the air.

"Isabelle!" Mulder yelled as his attention was momentarily distracted from the candle. He then watched as one by one the candles in the room began to flicker and burn out. He closed his eyes and prayed as he tried desperately to protect his candle. He then watched as the wind ceased, letting Isabelle fall to the ground. And the last thing he knew, he felt something hit him in the head and everything went black.

* * *

**Note: **The banishment procedures described in this chapter were based on what I personally know and may not necessarily be accurrate! So, please don't compare to other examples thank you! 


	16. You're Free, Scully

Mulder slowly opened his eyes and moaned. His entire body felt like a Mack truck had hit him. He shifted and found himself lying on the floor. As his eyes focused, he started to look around the room, which he found to be in a state of disarray. Papers were strewn on the floor, some breakable items were shattered on the floor and it basically looked like a cyclone had gone through it. And in a way, one had. "Oh god, Scully is going to kill me when she sees this mess." He slowly sat up and shook his head, which was pounding. He then started to remember what had happened. _The candle!_

His eyes searched the room desperately for the candle that he had been put in charge of. At first, he felt fear as he found all of the candles he saw were blown out. But then he remembered that the candle he was looking for was different from the rest. It had marks etched into it and was on an elaborate stand. And that was when he found it. He let out a sigh of relief as he saw the candle's flame still burning brightly. He closed his eyes and put his hands in prayer. "Oh, thank you." He whispered.

A low moan came from the other side of the room reminding him that he was not alone. It then dawned on him who it was. "Isabelle!" He regained his composure and rose from the floor to move over to the prone figure on the ground. He knelt down and cradled her delicate head. "Isabelle? Can you hear me?"

Isabelle's eyelids fluttered and her eyes half opened. "Fox?"

He caressed her dark hair gently. "Yes, it's me, Isabelle."

Isabelle then quickly sat up. "The candle! Where is it?"

"Isabelle, it's ok." Mulder answered placing his hands on her shoulders.

"But the candle?"

Mulder smiled. "It's still lit, Isabelle. And…from what I can tell Jeremy is gone."

Isabelle closed her eyes and laid her head back. "Thank god."

Mulder carefully eased her up. "And it's all thanks to you, Isabelle."

Isabelle carefully steadied herself on her feet. "Well, I have to admit that was one of the most difficult spirits I have ever had to deal with. He most definitely did NOT want to leave."

"But…he is gone, right?"

Isabelle walked over to the lit candle. "The candle to the other side is still burning. His presence is no longer here. I can't see why he would not have crossed over." She blew out the candle and started to walk around the room with her arms outstretched. "I can feel….no spirit presence here only what he has left behind." She turned to Mulder. "This apartment is clean, Fox. He is gone."

"You're sure?"

Isabelle nodded. "If he had not passed over I would still be able to pick up his spiritual energies. He's gone, Fox."

Mulder closed his eyes as a tear trickled down his cheek. "Scully is free."

Isabelle started to gather her candles. "Yes, if he has crossed over he can never harm her again."

Emotion overtook Mulder and he walked to Isabelle, hugging her tightly. "Thank you! Oh god, thank you! How can I ever repay you?"

Isabelle returned his hug and then pulled back. "I'm sure you'll think of something sometime. But in all seriousness, it's enough that I was able to vanquish such an evil spirit as that." She went back to getting her supplies put into her bag.

"You say you've never dealt with something like that before?"

Isabelle shook her head. "Normally, when dealing with a spirit, I can…feel some ounce of good in them. But that man…he was nothing but pure evil. Can you tell me how you knew his name?"

"Jeremy?" Mulder chuckled. "Oh he and I go WAY back as old friends."

"Really?"

Mulder handed her the book she had been reading from during the banishment. "Jeremy Reinsfeld was a serial killer responsible for the deaths of five prostitutes. He would…torture and sexually abuse his victims before killing them with a knife. He thought of himself as a modern day type _Jack the Ripper_." He paused. "Scully…was supposed to be victim number six but I stopped him. So, I guess he's a little peeved at me, go figure. But all that matters to me now is that Scully will be safe from him. That we can…both move on with our lives." He touched the side of her face. "Thank you, Isabelle."

Isabelle smiled back at him. "Anytime, Fox. Please give my apologies to Dana for the mess in her apartment. And tell her…I am sorry for all the pain she has suffered." She picked up her bag of supplies.

Mulder nodded. "I will." He escorted Isabelle to the door.

"And should anything happen, don't hesitate to call me." Isabelle then gave him a smile before walking out the door.

Mulder closed the door and leaned against it for a moment. He couldn't believe it was finally over! He had defeated an enemy from beyond and saved the woman he loved most. "Scully!" He ran to the closet and grabbed his coat before running out the door, closing it behind him.

* * *

Mulder carefully and quietly made his way to the hospital. After what Skinner had told him in regards to the rape, he didn't want to take any chances on a welcoming party. He knew that Scully was his only chance to escape trial for rape but with her unconscious it would make it VERY difficult. He had to at least see her to let her know that she was safe. He crept into her room and found her lying on the bed with her eyes closed. He smiled as he saw the cross he had placed around her neck, still dangling. At least no one had jeopardized anything by removing it. She looked just like angel to him as he watched her chest rise and fall. At least this time she was breathing on her own and not being aided by some machine. He reached over and brushed some of her red hair from her forehead. "Scully?"

Scully stirred and moaned as she felt something touch her skin. Her eyes then shot open and she sat up. "No! Jeremy!Please don't hurt me anymore!" She struggled against Mulder's gentle grip.

"Scully!" Mulder replied as he caressed her cheek gently. "It's ok, it's me. It's, Mulder."

Scully stopped struggling and looked back at him. "Mulder?"

"Hey, how are you?" He took her hand gently. "You know the FBI benefits group is going to come uncorked when they get your bill."

"I guess I keep insurance companies in business." She gave him a slight smile. "And….I'm doing ok, actually."

"Do you remember what happened?"

"A little." She swallowed. "All I know is that Jeremy somehow hurt me."

Mulder lowered his head and sighed. "He raped you, Scully."

Scully's smile faded. "He…"

"It's true, Scully. I saw it." Mulder winced as his memory recollected the terrible event.

"Oh my god." She whispered. "He'll never stop. He'll never leave me alone!"

Mulder raised his head. "Scully…"

"But he won't, Mulder!" She screamed back. "He won't stop until he kills me!"

Mulder placed his hand on the side of her face. "Scully, listen to me." He looked into her tear-filled eyes. "He can't hurt you anymore."

"What…what do you mean? We thought he was gone when he was dead!And yet he still hurt me!"

"He won't be coming back, Scully. I took care of it."

"How?"

"Remember, Isabelle? Well, I called her after you were taken to the hospital and she came over."

For the first time, Scully noticed the scratches on Mulder's face and his disheveled appearance. She reached out her hand and touched his face. "My god, Mulder what happened to you?"

"She performed a banishment ritual."

"Banishment ritual?"

"Basically, she tried to get Jeremy to cross over to the other side. What you would call Heaven? Anyway, the marks you see on me prove that he didn't really want to go." He took her hand and brought it to his lips. "But we did it, Scully. Jeremy crossed over and can never hurt you again. You're free, Scully."

"Oh my god." Scully rested her face on his hand and cried.

"Ssssh…it's ok." Mulder whispered as he caressed her hair. "I told you I would protect you, Scully. That I would find a way somehow and I did."

Scully turned her head and kissed his hand as tears streamed down her cheeks. "I just want us to be together. That's all and nothing else."

"And we will now, Scully." He reached over and lifted her necklace from her neck. "I promise."

Scully looked down at the necklace and then back up at him. "I've always had the strength of your beliefs."

Mulder moved his hands to the side of her face. "You are my strength and always have been." He leaned toward her. "I want this to work, Scully. I love and care about you more than anything." He tilted his head as he inched close to her lips. "You…are my life now."

"You're my savior." Scully whispered as she closed her eyes and closed the gap between them with a kiss.

Mulder had to admit that he hadn't quite expected this reaction from her but he wasn't exactly objecting either. To him, this kiss meant that she wasn't afraid of him anymore. He returned her kiss with pleasure and ran his fingers through her hair.

The sound of someone clearing his or her throat then broke the mood.

Mulder reluctantly pulled back and turned to see Skinner standing in the doorway. "Why doesn't it surprise me that the person to interrupt something like this would be you?"

"Excuse me for interrupting your…visit. But I need to speak with you in the hallway."

Mulder reached over and took Scully's hand. "Anything you need to speak to me about you can say in front of Scully."

"I think under the circumstances this is something that she doesn't need to be a part of. She's been through enough as it is."

Mulder kissed her hand. "I'll be right back ok?" He then walked over to Skinner. "All right what is it?"

"I'd say you have a lot of guts coming back here after what you did!" Skinner answered in a forceful whisper as he leaned toward Mulder.

Mulder looked back at him with angry eyes. "I told you I did NOT rape her!"

"Oh are we back on that shit again! You told me you were going to come back with proof! So where the hell is it?"

"He didn't rape me."

Skinner and Mulder both turned at the same time to see Scully looking straight at them.

"I don't appreciate you making such accusations about a man that you know would never do such a thing." Scully replied coldly. "You of all people should know after all these years that Fox Mulder would NEVER commit such a crime especially with me."

"Agent Scully, he was the only person present when…"

"Regardless, he did NOT rape me and I would appreciate it if you stop insisting that he did."

"Agent Scully, I don't think you're in any condition at this time to…"

"Sir, I don't appreciate you trying to tell me what my condition is." Scully replied back curtly. "As you can see I am quite awake and able to speak. Fox Mulder saved my life or have you forgotten?"

"Agent Scully, others are not going to be as understanding."

"Then tell them. I'll testify if I have to."

Mulder looked at Scully and sighed. "Scully.."

Scully glanced back at him. "Mulder, I'm not going to let you be accused for something you didn't do."

Skinner pulled Mulder into the hallway. "Boy, you've just got her all bamboozled in there don't you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh come on, Mulder! I come in there and you two are kissing for god's sakes! You've got her wrapped around your little finger! Having her sympathize with her rapist? Yeah, that's a good tactic!"

Anger seized Mulder and the next he knew; he was pushing Skinner up against the wall. "It's none of your damn business about the relationship that Scully and I have because I'm not an FBI Agent anymore remember? Meaning that I don't have to stand here and listen to you spitting out protocol to me regarding inner office relationships! I love Scully!"

"What?"

"Yeah that's right. You heard me. I LOVE her. Now you tell me how someone could commit a violent crime like rape against someone that they care deeply about? You care to answer that for me, Walter?"

"Look, I'm just going by WHAT I was told." Skinner answered back angrily. "And if you wish to keep your innocence then I advise you to let go of me."

Mulder released his grip on Skinner. "I told you I would stop whoever did this and I did. And if you choose to not believe me then that's your choice. But when this is all over and done with you are going to owe me an apology! And after that, I want you to leave Scully and me alone! I want EVERYONE just to leave us alone!" He moved away from Skinner and headed back into Scully's room.

"Mulder?" Scully asked in a concerned voice. "What is it?"

"Skinner….is going to try and bring this to trial, Scully." He shook his head. "He actually believes that I raped you and that I'm trying to brainwash you into saying I didn't."

"I…I can't believe that."

"Yeah, well he is." Mulder clenched his fist. "I mean I can't fucking believe this!"

"Mulder…"

"How could he believe I could do something like this, Scully?" He sighed and sat next to the bed with his head in his hands.

"He's..he's just stressed, Mulder."

He raised his head. "Dammit, he said I raped you, Scully!" He pounded the side of the bed as he laid his head on it. "He said…"

Scully reached over and kissed the top of his head tenderly. "Mulder, please don't come apart on me now when I need you the most. You said we could get through anything right? You said I was your strength? Well, you are mine."

Mulder raised his head and looked at her. "Scully.."

Scully reached forward and hugged him tightly. "We'll get through this somehow, Mulder." She whispered as she put her head on his shoulder. "We have to."

Mulder sighed as he closed his eyes and let the tears come. "We will, Scully." He reassured her. "I promise." He caressed her hair. "And when this is all over…we can tell the entire world to kiss our ass!"

Scully chuckled slightly as she closed her eyes and continued to hug him. She just had to believe that they would get through this. And then there would be nothing preventing them from being together.

Mulder paused. "Oh and Scully? I'm sorry about your apartment."

"Oh, that's ok, Mulder." Her eyes then flew open realizing what he had just said. "Wait, what about my apartment?"

* * *

**Note: **Special thanks to my friend Jess for being the first to read this chapter and let me know what she thought! Thanks Jess! 


	17. The Hip Chick and The Greaser

A week had passed since the last incident involving Jeremy and Scully. There had been no event since the rape and the apartment had remained calm. Scully had been in the hospital recovering and had finally been deemed fit to return home. And in about another week, she had been told she would be ready to return to work as well. The case originally planned in regards to Scully's rape was dropped due to insufficient evidence and was never brought to trial. At that time, Mulder was certainly glad to have so many people willing to vouch for him. Margaret Scully had put her reputation on the line for a written testimony and he would never forget it as long as he lived. He knew that Scully's mother liked him but he truly didn't know how much until that very day. And as for Scully? Well, she also proved her loyalty to Mulder in her written testimony as well. Mulder hated to see her put through such a thing, considering everything else she had been through but she was a trooper. Isabelle had even told Mulder that she would be willing to testify for him in regards to what she had observed in Scully's apartment if need be. Luckily, it had never come to that and Mulder was glad. Something told him that entity rape and hauntings would not float well in a court of law and he might have ended up in a hospital too… with padded walls!

Scully's recovery that week had been a slow one but Mulder had never been more proud of her and was with her every step of the way. Her facial scars were completely healed thanks to treatments. After hours of physical therapy, Scully had finally been able to walk without the use of a cane and Mulder cried when he saw the happy look on her face as she took her first steps. It was an emotional roller coaster for both of them but they had made it through. And that week, he and Margaret had split up the duties of taking care of Scully at the hospital. He and Margaret had grown a lot closer during that time and he had a new respect for her. They had also both agreed that Scully could go stay with her mother for some time before returning to work. It was the least that Mulder could do to show his appreciation for what Margaret had done for him. And now he was taking Scully home.

Mulder tapped on the bathroom door. "Doing ok in there?"

"Yes, I'm doing fine, thank you." Scully's muffled voice replied through the door. "I think I remember how to put on a shirt and pants!"

Mulder smirked. "Sure you don't need me to refresh your memory?"

"I heard that!" She called back.

"Hey, I was just asking." He replied in an innocent voice.

"Uh-huh." Scully opened the door, standing in a white t-shirt and blue jeans. "Well?"

"Let's just hope it isn't raining outside or you might give everyone a show."

Scully playfully hit him. "Remember, I saved your ass from that trial."

"And I saved your ass so we're even." Mulder chided back as he grabbed her plastic bag.

Scully gave him a look before walking out of the room. "God, I can't wait to get home and take a nice, long bath in my own bath tub."

Mulder caught up with her. "Actually, Scully you may not get a chance to do that, tonight."

Scully looked at him. "What do you mean?" She noticed Mulder avoiding her eyes. "Mulder, what could possibly take the place of me taking a bath in my own apartment after a week?"

"Well, it's like this, Scully." He sighed as he looked at her. "See, I knew you were getting out so I wanted to make your homecoming special. You know…celebrate how you are physically well again etc?"

"And?"

"Well, my friend is having this 'Oldies Party' and well….I want to take you to it." He pushed the button on the elevator.

"An 'Oldies Party'?" Scully asked as she raised an eyebrow. "Mulder, are you crazy?"

"What? Oh come on, Scully! It would be fun! Me dressing up like a greaser and you…dressed up in a cute poodle skirt with your hair in a pony tail?"

"A greaser, Mulder?" Scully shook her head. "Mulder, I can't dance."

"I'll show you. And..and I promise to be gentle with you." He gave her a pleading look complete with puppy-dog eyes. "Please, Scully?"

Scully sighed. "Well…"

"Come on, Scully. It will give us both the chance to have some fun! You…do remember what fun is, right?"

Scully gave him a look. "Yes, I am capable of that!" She paused. "All right, I'll go with you. But if you embarrass me, it's going to be a LONG night for you, got it?"

Mulder saluted her as the elevator door opened. "Scouts honor." He walked her into the elevator. "Come on, let's go pick up our costumes."

"Costumes?" Scully asked as the door closed on them.

* * *

Scully stood next to Mulder wearing a blue poodle skirt complete with crinoline and a black belt as well as a white top. Her hair was done up in a ponytail and tied with a ribbon. On her feet were saddle shoes, which she was shuffling. "This is SO humiliating!"

Mulder glanced at her. He was wearing a white shirt underneath a black leather jacket along with a pair of blue jeans. His hair was all greased and came to a crest, which dangled in strands on his forehead. "Oh come on baby. A hot little chick like you with a cool biker like me?" He placed his arm around her. "Stick with me baby and everything will be just fine." He then led her through the door and into the building. The entire room was filled with people dressed in costumes from the 50's and 60's who were dancing and sitting at tables. In the front, a band could be seen playing music for the dancers on the floor. He glanced around until he saw who he was looking for. "Hey, Marty!"

A man wearing a preppy outfit turned. "Mulder!" He walked over to him. "Hey man, glad you could make it! Came dressed as your alter ego huh?"

Mulder shrugged his shoulders. "What can I say?"

Marty turned to Scully. "And just who might be this…pretty little thing with you?"

"Dana Scully." Scully answered.

"Dana?" Marty took Scully's hand and kissed it. "What a beautiful name. So tell me why a girl like you is hanging with a rebel like him?"

Mulder took Scully's hand away from Marty. "All right, all right. Hands off, SQUARE, the chick is with me."

Marty looked at Scully. "When he rips your heart and stomps on it, you know where to find me."

Mulder watched Marty walk away. "Can you believe the nerve of that guy? Trying to steal my chick away from me?"

"Oh, I don't know. I think he was kind of cute." Scully answered.

Mulder turned to look at her. "Please tell me you are kidding? I mean the guy was wearing a cardigan around his shoulders for god sakes!" He then noticed her trying not to laugh. "Why I outta…" He then placed his arm around her again. "Come on hip chick, let's go get a table."

* * *

"So, anyway Marty stepped into the back room in nothing but his boxers. And then this spotlight came on and he found himself on this stage for a Ladies Guild Fashion Show!" Mulder replied as he took a sip of beer.

Scully laughed as she held a bottle of beer in her hand. "Oh my god, Mulder that's terrible!"

"Yeah, he was pretty pissed off."Mulder chuckled before taking another sip. "But…he was a good sport. See, he stood there for a few seconds and then he started to do this strip tease bit. Boy, I'm telling you I think some of those women saw more of a man that night then they had in years!"

"It's no wonder you make so many enemies, Mulder."

"Yeah, well that's why I made it through Quantico and he didn't." Mulder replied with a triumphant smile before taking another drink.

"Oh my god, the Bureau found out about that?"

Mulder nodded. "That's why they kicked him out."

Scully gave him a look. "They kicked him out of Quantico because of a prank you pulled? Mulder, that's not right! You should have taken the blame!"

Mulder held up his hand. "Now, just hold on. I said that was what got him kicked out. That was the FINAL thing that got him kicked out. Marty was responsible for more pranks at the Academy then our whole class combined! Everyone was glad to see him kicked out. He had no discipline." He took another drink.

"And you did?" Scully asked as she raised an eyebrow. "Mr. Refusing to Follow Protocol?"

Mulder shrugged his shoulders. "Guess I had better points in other places than Marty did." He then heard the band starting up the song _Rock Around The Clock_. He grabbed Scully's hand. "Come on cool chick, let's dance!"

"I already told you that I don't…" Before Scully could finish, Mulder had yanked her out of her chair and was pulling her toward the floor. "Now, wait a second! You said you wouldn't make me do something I didn't want to!"

"Come on Scully! Let's shake those legs of yours!" He then moved her arms back and forth as he helped her step with her feet. "That's it. You're doing great! Now, I want you to pull back from me and I'll pull you back in." He watched as Scully stepped back from him and then he pulled her back. "Good. Now let's try a twirl. I'm going to spin you out and then back to me."

Scully gasped as Mulder spun her out and then brought him back to her. After doing it a few more times, she found herself giggling as she continued to dance with him.

"That's it! You got it hip chick!" Mulder replied as he continued to dance with her and manipulated the twirls. He couldn't help but smile as he watched Scully laugh. It had seemed like forever since he had seen her acting this way. As the song came to an end, he brought her back to him and then picked her up and spun her around. He smiled and laughed as they came to a stop. He saw Scully looking back at him as she held her arm up with a huge grin on her face. He then realized how close their faces were to one another. He could feel his breathing becoming heavy as their lips almost touched. "We…we should sit down."

Scully nodded. "Yes, I…I think that's a good idea."

Mulder let her down and then walked back toward the table. "Oh, I forgot I need to…talk to Marty about something. Why don't you have a seat and I'll be right back ok?"

She took a seat." You won't be leaving me alone that long, will you?"

"Are you kidding? I leave you too long and someone else will try and grab you from me!" He reached down and kissed her forehead. "I'll be back."

Scully smiled as she watched Mulder walk away. She had to admit she was truly enjoying herself tonight. It had been forever since she had laughed and gone out like this. She never knew he could dance like that! She was seeing an entirely different side of Fox Mulder tonight that's for sure! And the thing was, she liked it! She took another sip of her beer.

"Ladies and gentleman can I have your attention please?" Asked the lead singer from the stage. "Thank you. At this time, we have a very special dedication going out to a very special lady." He pulled out an index card and started to read. _"To my very special hip chick and terrific dancing partner. Thank you for agreeing to party with me. I hope I showed you how a greaser can be better than a square. You are my cool chick and always will be. Love Foxy_." The band then started to play and a spotlight came on the stage revealing Mulder with a microphone.

Scully nearly choked on her beer. "Mulder?"

Mulder began to sing:

_Wise men say, only fools rush in. For I can't help falling in love with you._

_Shall I stay? Would it be a sin?_

_If I can't help falling in love with you._

Mulder stepped off the stage and made his way toward Scully as he continued to sing.

_Like a river flows, surely to the sea._

_Darling so it goes, some things are meant to be._

Mulder squatted down in front of her as he continued the song and took her hand.

_Take my hand, take my whole life too._

_For I can't help falling in love with you._

Mulder moved his face until it was in front of hers.

_For I can't help falling in love with you._

"I love you, Scully."

"You're…you're crazy." Scully whispered back.

"What can I say? Love makes me do crazy things." Mulder then put down the microphone and reached forward, kissing her gently.

The entire room bust into applause and cheering as Scully returned the kiss and placed her arms around his neck. She then pulled back. "You make me feel like a teenager again."

"Thank you. Thank you very much." Mulder replied with an Elvis smirk. "So, does this mean you're having a good time?"

Scully put her forehead to his. "The best time of my life."

Mulder smiled as he kissed her again. He then pulled back as heard the band start to play _Earth Angel_. "Would you dance with me, my angel?" He whispered in her ear.

"I'd love to, Foxy." She replied back as she took his hand.

Mulder rose from his position on the floor and led her to the dance floor. He rocked with her slowly as he placed his hands around her waist. A smile crept across his face as Scully placed her head on his shoulder. He was really glad that this evening was going so well for them. "Earth Angel, earth angel, please be mine." He sang in her ear. "My darling dear, love you all the time. I'm just a fool, a fool in love with you."

Scully picked up her head from his shoulder and placed her arms around his neck. She then rocked with him before leaning forward and kissing him tenderly.

Mulder returned her kiss and deepened it slightly as his hands played with her ponytail. His hands then ran slowly down her back. He started to rub her back gently as he continued to kiss her.

Scully moaned as she felt his hands moving slowly down her bare arms. She could feel her heart beat quickening and her skin tingling as she deepened the kiss even more, placing her tongue in his mouth. More moans escaped her as she felt their tongues connect. This was the most relaxed she had felt in a long time and she wasn't afraid of being intimate like this.

Mulder found himself moaning as their kissing intensified. Such a change from a little over a week ago when they had been in this situation and she had pulled away. He pulled back from her lips to catch his breath. "Scully?"

"Yes, Mulder?"

"What…what do you say we skip out of this joint and go back to my place." He sighed. "I mean YOUR place. Sorry force of habit."

Scully gave him a tender smile. "I think that sounds like a wonderful idea, Foxy."

"So, a hip chick like you doesn't mind being with a greaser like me?"

Scully reached up her hand and pulled gently on a strand of Mulder's greased hair. "Not in the least. I like bad boys." She whispered.

Mulder's eyes widened. "Really?"

"Uh-huh. So, you want to corrupt the innocent little school girl?" She asked tilting her head.

"I've been responsible for the corruptions of many girls." Mulder answered as he touched her cheek.

"Then take me for a ride on your motorcycle." Scully grinned.

"Oooh…you'll definitely get a ride baby." Mulder grinned back. "I've got a special seat just for you." He rubbed noses with her. "Come on let's make like a tree and leaf." He then took her hand and led her off the dance floor and to the exit.


	18. Crossing the Boundary

Giggles resounded down the hall as Mulder and Scully made their way back to her apartment. Scully looked at Mulder who appeared to be fumbling. "Mulder, are you sure you're ok?"

"The name…is Foxy remember?"

"Ok, sure Foxy. Are you sure you can stand on your own two feet?"

"Of course I am! I'm a biker remember? I'm tough!" He pointed to himself. "NOBODY messes with me!"

"Yeah." Scully replied as she pulled out her keys to unlock her door. "And I think that Foxy had a little too much beer." She muttered as she opened the door.

"Wait, is the hip chick accusing Foxy of being drunk?" Mulder asked as he leaned on the doorframe.

"No, I am the one accusing YOU of being drunk." Scully corrected him. "Now please get inside and close the door behind you."

Mulder chuckled and then stepped inside before closing the door behind him. "Boy, you changed all of a sudden."

"I changed? Mulder, YOU changed! You took me out for one of the best times I've ever known and then…you spoil it on the way home by stopping by a bar and drinking! I mean it's bad enough you did that but with us dressed like this? I almost had to show that one guy a move I learned at Quantico! Not that you would have noticed because you were so busy drinking!"

"Oh, I see it's ok if YOU get drunk on wine but it's not ok for ME to get drunk?"

"This is different, Mulder!"

"How so?"

Scully started to say something and put up her hands. "Never mind. Let's just forget all right? I don't want to fight. I'm tired and I just want to relax for the rest of the night. If you want some liquor there is some left in the kitchen. Good night." She turned around and headed for her bedroom.

"That's it? You have nothing else to say to me? Like how you enjoyed yourself for the first time in years?"

Scully sighed and turned around. "Fine. I had a great time tonight. There, you happy? Good night."

Mulder walked up to her and grabbed her hand. "No good night kiss?"

Scully raised an eyebrow. "After you dragged me to that bar you have the audacity to ask me for a good night kiss? You're kidding right?"

"Do I look like I'm kidding?"

"Mulder, you embarrassed me! You made a complete ass of yourself!"

Mulder shrugged his shoulders. "Come on you liked it."

"You are…." She shook her head. "Nope, I'm not going to this. This isn't fair because you are drunk. So, before I say some things we might both regret, I'm going to bed." She turned to leave but Mulder spun her back around to face him. She looked back at him. "I told you…"

Mulder cut off her sentence as he placed his lips over hers in a kiss. He then pulled back and looked at her. "Does it look like I was kidding now?"

"You're…..you're drunk, Mulder."

"On the contrary. Right now at this point I am quite sober." Mulder whispered as he reached his hand back and brushed her ponytail. "I thought the hip chick wanted to take a ride on my bike?"

Scully shivered slightly as his hand went from her ponytail to caress her cheek. "I…I thought you were more interested in beer?"

"I took you out tonight and to that bar to try and relax you, Scully. To make you cut loose and live a little. I wanted our first date to be special."

"Date?"

"Well of course. What did you think that was? I had promised to take you out right?"

"You…had promised to take me to dinner."

"And I would say I went beyond that." Mulder replied as he caressed under her chin. "I got you food, beer, dancing…"

Scully looked back at him as she trembled. "So…so what's left?"

"How about taking that ride we talked about?" Mulder asked as he leaned into her and once again kissed her lips. He placed his hands on the side of her face as he deepened the kiss slightly. He then slowly let his fingers ease down the side of her neck.

Scully moaned as she deepened the kiss even more and placed her arms around his neck. She then pulled back and rested her forehead against his. "I'm ready to take that ride now." She whispered.

Mulder smiled back at her before leaning forward and taking her lips in a passionate kiss. He changed to an open-mouthed kiss and encouraged Scully to do the same. He soon found her more than willing to oblige as he felt her tongue exploring his mouth. He moaned as his tongue came forward and connected with hers. Their tongues danced together as he felt her pulling off his leather jacket down his shoulders. He put his arms to the side making it easier for her as he continued to kiss her. He then heard it fall behind him on the floor. He pulled back from her lips. "Careful, that's a rental."

"Shut up, Mulder." Scully replied before leaning toward him and kissing him passionately.

Mulder returned her kiss as he carefully bent down and scooped her up crinoline and all into his arms. He steadied her and ran his hands down her bare legs as he continued to kiss her. He then started walking toward the bedroom.

Scully placed her arms back around him and moaned as she felt his strong hands on her bare skin. She had dreamt about a scene similar to this for so long, minus the 50's outfits of course. But at this point, she didn't care. All that mattered was that this was happening and this time she was not afraid in the least.

Mulder held onto Scully as best as he could while he worked on the door handle with one hand. He finally managed to turn it and pushed the door open with his foot. He was careful in pushing the door, as he didn't want to have another one to replace. He walked into the room and over toward the bed as he continued running his hand down Scully's leg. He then pulled back from their kiss as he felt the saddle shoes on her feet. "Uh, Scully I'm not quite sure how comfortable this will be with those on. Not to mention if I get kicked that's really going to…"

"So, untie them." Scully answered back. She then watched as Mulder untied first one shoe then the other. She then swung her feet until both shoes flew in the air and landed on her dresser nearly crashing her jewelry box to the floor. "Oops."

Mulder looked back at her. "Wow, you're dangerous with those things." He then carried her over to the bed and laid her down gently. He smiled as he saw her skirt all puffed up at the bottom hiding her head.

"What?"

"Nothing, you just look funny with all that crinoline pushing you up."

Scully sat up on her elbows and looked at him. "Then why don't you take it off?"

Mulder took a seat on the edge of the bed and pushed his hand under the levels of crinoline searching for the waistband. He could hear Scully moaning as his hands once again came into contact with bare skin on her legs and thighs. He finally found what he was looking for and pulled down on it gently, easing it off her body slowly. "Now, I can see just why boys had a hard time getting laid back in the 50's as it was too much work." He grabbed the crinoline and tossed it onto the floor. "Ah, that's better." He then ran his hands under her skirt again as he placed himself over her. "You sure you're ok with this?"

Scully pushed him back gently and sat up. She then took her hands and pulled her shirt up and over her head, tossing it to the floor. "Does that answer your question?" She asked as she looked back at him wearing a bra. "Now, it's your turn." She took her hands and moved them to the bottom of Mulder's shirt. Pulling on it, she guided it up his body and over his head. As she looked back at his bare chest, her eyes widened. "So, that's what you keep tucked under there."

"There's plenty more where that comes from." Mulder answered as he started to gently ease her back down on the bed. He then watched as Scully put out her hand to stop him. Had she changed her mind after all? He then received his answer as he watched her reach behind and undo her bra. His hands reached up to her shoulders, helping the straps down. He then took her arms and placed them over her head as he eased the bra off of her. He looked back at her bare chest. "Oh, Scully." He whispered as he eased her back down on the bed again.

Scully moaned as she felt Mulder's lips on her chest exploring every part of it and alternating with teeth and tongue. She could feel herself trembling with desire as he fumbled with the belt holding her skirt never missing rhythm with his kisses to her breasts and nipples. She felt the belt finally give way and heard it fall upon the floor. She lifted herself off the bed as she felt him pulling at her skirt to assist him in taking it off. "Yes, Mulder. I'm ready." She whispered.

Mulder pulled back from her and undid his blue jeans, wriggling out of them, sending them to the floor. He then watched as Scully pulled out the ribbon from her hair, taking out her ponytail and shaking her hair back into place. "God, Scully you are so beautiful." He whispered as he made his way up to her stomach and then began kissing it. He could hear Scully's moans as he slowly worshipped her body with his lips and tongue not missing an inch. It was appropriate to use the word worship for she was just like a goddess to him.

Scully felt his hands as they pulled on her panties and started sliding them down her legs. "Yes, Mulder." She breathed. She moaned as she felt him exploring her with his fingers. "Oh god."

Now that Mulder knew she was ready, he removed his boxers and kicked them to the side. He wondered who was more turned on, he or Scully. And why shouldn't they be? It had only taken six years for this to happen! All those years of teasing with hugs and kisses on the cheek was about to come to a head. But he was still afraid of hurting her due to her previous physical experiences. He positioned himself above her. "Scully, the last thing I want to do is hurt you. So, if this hurts you in any way and you want me to stop, I want you to tell me ok?"

"I promise." Scully whispered as she placed her hand on the side of his face. "I want this and I'm not afraid."

Mulder smiled down at her. She was truly the bravest woman he had ever known and now he was about to share something very intimate and personal with her. They were about to cross the line from friends to lovers. He took a deep breath and then entered her gently. Glancing down at her, he waited for her reaction before continuing. "You ok?"

Scully looked back at him and moaned. "Mmmmm….never felt better." She then started to push herself up against him.

Mulder echoed her moan as he felt her move against him. Knowing that she wasn't in any pain, he met her with a thrust and started to move faster. This very moment had been on his mind since that night they had pizza and wine. He had been afraid that after Jeremy he might have lost this kind of opportunity with her forever. But now here he was making tender but passionate love to her just like he had always dreamed. He was making love with his Dana….his Scully.

Scully craned her neck back and closed her eyes as she felt Mulder moving on top of her. Any physical ailments she had suffered before were now completely absent from her memory. The pain that had consumed her was now replaced with wonderful, sensuous pleasure. And the man responsible for bringing her back to life was Fox Mulder. She continued to move with him as their bodies sought out the release they were looking for. She could feel a tingling sensation from within her that was enhanced by both Mulder's thrusting and kisses on her chest and neck. In her mind she could see two souls converging together and bursting into one ray of light as she finally shuddered and cried out his name.

"Scully!" Mulder cried out as he arched his back and achieved his bodily release. He then collapsed on top of her, breathing heavily. Taking in a few breaths, he noticed Scully's silence. He raised his head. "Scully? You ok?"

Scully lay with her head resting on a pillow with a look of complete satisfaction on her face. She swallowed. "Oh god, that was incredible."

"You're….you're not hurting?"

Scully shook her head. "The only thing I feel is….pleasure and fulfillment. You have no idea how long I've wanted to have you do that to me."

Mulder gently eased himself off of her and rolled over to the side. "Really? That makes two of us."

Scully turned toward him. "You've been thinking about what it would feel like for me to be made love to by you?"

"What?" Mulder then noticed her grin. "No smart alec. I meant that I've wanted to know what it would feel like for ME to make love to YOU."

"And?"

Mulder reached out and rubbed her cheek with his thumb. "It's even more wonderful then I could have possibly dreamed or thought. You don't…regret this happening do you?"

"Not in the least." Scully answered as she leaned into his touch.

Mulder pulled her to him and brought the sheet up to cover them. "Wow, I can't believe what just happened."

Scully smiled as she laid her head on his chest and made circles on his abs with her finger. "What?"

"I just made love with Special Agent Dana Scully in her apartment and in her bed." He paused. "And she didn't try and kick my ass."

"Well, you did sing for me tonight, I figured that deserved a little something." She grinned.

"Yeah, I did didn't I? So you liked the ole 'Foxy Crooner'?"

"Well….I don't think I would classify that as crooning necessarily. Howling maybe but not crooning."

Mulder turned to look at her. "Are you saying you didn't like my singing?"

Scully did her best to keep a straight face as she looked back at him.

"Scully, I'm hurt! Foxy Presley performed for his Priscilla and you mock him!" He turned away from her.

"What? Oh come on, Mulder you hit MAYBE three notes."

"I was singing in a different key."

"What key? Key Majorly flat?" She teased.

"Oh, I see how it goes. You have Foxy Presley make passionate love to you and then you wound him about his singing. That's fine."

Scully sighed as she saw him still turned away from her. "Mulder, I'm….I'm sorry I didn't mean to hurt you that way."

Mulder waved at her with his hand. "No, no, no I don't want to hear it. The damage is done."

Scully huffed. "Fine." She went to move when she suddenly found herself pinned.

"Gotcha." Mulder replied with a sly grin as he looked down at her.

Scully looked back at him as she narrowed her eyes. "Why you…now I should kick your ass!"

"Oh, I think I can think of another thing it's good for besides kicking." He waggled his eyebrows at her.

"Oh now you think you're all that, don't you?"

"And a bag of chips." Mulder added.

"More like a bag of stale chips."

Without another word, Mulder reached down and started to tickle her. "Oh I am huh? A stale bag of chips?"

"Yes!Yes you are!" Scully laughed back as she tried to fend him off. She realized that for the first time in weeks she was actually laughing to the point where it was hurting her sides. She struggled to catch her breath and looked back at him. "You are more than a bag of chips, Fox Mulder."

"Oh?"

She nodded and traced his lips with her finger. "You're an infinite number bag of chips."

Mulder smiled and then lifted her finger from his lips and kissed it. He then leaned forward and kissed her lips gently.

The rest of the night, the apartment echoed with cries of passion as two friends proclaimed their feelings for one another and crossed over eternally into the lovers' realm. Two lost souls reconnected once again until they finally came to rest and fell asleep in a loving and peaceful embrace.

* * *

**Note: **Ok let me just say a few things here. There are some who said that the last chapter was unbelievable and I have this to say. First of all, I am a shipper which means I support a Mulder/Scully relationship and this means that this kind of behavior is theisable in my mind. I see Mulder as more than just a stuck up man repressed in his own misery. Sadly, we didn't get to learn everything about him in the show. How do we know he couldn't dance?Was it ever said that he couldn't? I chose that scene as I wanted to lighten things up a little and as was stated in this chapter, Mulder may have sung but he was NOT in tune. So, if you don't like my take on being a shipper then don't read this plain and simple. Now, as far as the whole Scully being raped thing goes. First of all, Scully was DRUGGED by Jeremy when he dragged her into the apartment and therefore was not completly conscious. This would constitute as to why she would not have fought back completely as she was weakened from the choloroform. AND she was slapped and beaten roughly so you tell me if she could fight back from such a thing!Secondly, entity rape is not exactly something you can fight against!It's much different then when you are being raped by someone you can see!Anyway, that's me off my soap box. Thanks to those of you who keep reading this, your reviews are greatly appreciated!And there is MUCH more to come!

Dana


	19. You Belong To Me

The past few days had been wonderful for Mulder. Since the night they had consummated their relationship, they had spent every waking moment together. And they had spent many moments together in Scully's bed as well. Each time they made love seemed better than the first and Mulder never knew he could be so happy. But there was one thing he hadn't told Scully about…the nightmares. Every night he was plagued by horrific images that he couldn't explain. He sometimes saw himself making love with Scully but in ways that he never had before. And then there was the screaming and the blood. They seemed to intensify each night but Scully was always there to chase them away. But now she wouldn't be for a while and for some reason that scared him. He stood in the doorway to the bedroom and observed her with a suitcase. "Do you really have to go, Scully?"

Scully placed some clothes in her suitcase. "Mulder, I told you that it's just until the end of the week. And I thought you and Mom had agreed to this before I got out of the hospital?"

"We did but…"

"But what?"

Mulder came up behind her and placed his arms around her waist. "That was before we made love that night." He put his head on her shoulder and nuzzled her neck. "Before I realized what I had been missing out on all these years." He started to kiss her neck slowly.

Scully moaned as she felt his lips on her neck. "Mulder, I….I need to pack."

"Finish it later." Mulder whispered as his lips moved to her ear. He started to trace the outline of it with his tongue and then nibbled on her earlobe.

Scully took in breaths. "Mulder, I…I told Mom I would be ready in…."

"So call and tell her to come a little later." He replied as he started to slide the straps down on her shirt. He started to kiss her shoulder and back up to her neck again.

"Mulder, I can't."

"Sure you can." Mulder murmured on her skin as he ran his hand under her shirt and started to caress the top of her breast.

Scully swallowed for a minute and then pulled away from him. "No, I can't, Mulder!"

Mulder sighed. "What is wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with ME?" Scully asked looking back at him. "Mulder, what is wrong with you?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean this whole…touchy, touchy feely thing you've been doing these past few days! I mean I understand that we've become lovers but…."

Mulder grabbed her and pulled her to him. "Oh come on, you like it and you know it."

"It's true I like making love but does it have to be every hour? I understand that we're trying to catch up on six years but do we have to do all of that in two days?"

Mulder chuckled as he tightened his grip on her wrist. "Wait, you're telling me that you haven't been enjoying things these past few days?"

"Ow, Mulder you're….you're hurting me."

"That every time you screamed out my name and had an orgasm that nearly shook the walls that you WEREN'T enjoying it? Is that what you are trying to tell me?"

"Let go of me." She replied in a firm tone.

"Every time I pounded into you and sent you into ecstasy that it meant nothing? When I licked you between your legs and you begged me not to stop, it meant nothing?"

"I said, let go of me!"

Mulder released his grip on her. "Oh, so I see how it is. Everything's all fine and dandy when YOU want to have sex! But hey if Mulder does then he's INTRUDING!"

"I never said that I didn't like to have sex with you!"

"Yeah, well that's what I'm hearing now!"

Scully could feel tears coming to her eyes. "What's….what's happened to you?" She whispered. "Why are you so angry? It's like you've gone from this loving person to someone full of animosity."

"I saved your life, Scully remember?"

"So, you think that makes me obligated to give sex to you anytime you want it?" She noticed his silence. "Oh my god, I can't believe you're saying this." She went back to her suitcase. "I am going to stay with Mom whether you like it or not."

Mulder grabbed her around the waist roughly. "Not if I don't let you."

"Dammit, Mulder let go of me!" She struggled against him as he pushed himself against her. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she felt his hands under her shirt. "Stop!Please stop this!" She pleaded as she felt his lips kissing her neck roughly.

Mulder continued kissing Scully and exploring with his hands when he suddenly stopped. He could hear Scully's pleas and blinked his eyes. He shook his head and pulled away. He looked to see Scully trembling in front of him grasping onto her shirt. What had he done? "Scully…"

Without another word, Scully turned back around and closed her suitcase. She then picked it up and started to head for the door.

"Scully, I'm…I'm sorry." He immediately went after her and grabbed her hand.

"Don't touch me!" Scully yelled back as she pulled against his grip. "It's clear to me that you've shown me what you want out of this relationship!"

"What I want is to be with you!"

Scully heard a knock at her door. "Yeah, just so you can have sex with me!"

"That's not true and you know it!"

"Dana?" Margaret Scully called from outside the door.

"I'm coming Mom!" Scully called back. She then turned to Mulder. "I don't know what's true right now, Mulder. But you're going to have till the end of the week to find out!" She released herself from his grip and placed her hand on the door handle.

"Scully, please just listen to me."

Scully looked at him and turned the handle. "Goodbye Mulder. You have my cell number. Please don't use it." She then opened the door and walked out as she fought back tears.

"Scully!" Mulder yelled as he slammed his hand against the door. He could feel his head pounding and winced as he brought his hand to his forehead. He could hear a voice laughing at him manically and the screaming and horrific images returned. He slowly sank to the ground as he fought them. "No!" He screamed.

* * *

Isabelle sat at a table lighting some candles when she heard a knock at her door. She turned toward the door and walked to it. She looked through the peephole and then opened it. "Fox? What…what are you doing here?"

Mulder stood in the doorway with a bottle of wine. "Remember you asked me to repay you? Well, that's what I'm here to do." He replied with a smile as he handed her the bottle. "Can I come in?"

"Uhhh…sure." She moved to the side. "Please, come in."

"Thanks." Mulder replied as he stepped inside and closed the door behind him. His eyes glanced around the room, which was illuminated by candles and had shelves of books. "This is a….nice place you have here."

Isabelle walked into her kitchen with the bottle and managed to unscrew the cork. "Thanks, I like to call it home." She took out two wine glasses and started to pour wine in them. "I want you to know that I normally don't see people without an appointment."

"Then I consider myself lucky."Mulder answered as he took a seat on the couch.

Isabelle brought the wine glasses into the living room and in front of a fireplace. She handed a glass to Mulder. "So, how's Dana doing?"

Mulder took a drink of his wine. "Mmmm, it's good. Scully? Oh she's…she's doing ok. You know she's…out of the hospital and recuperating. She's at her mother's now."

Isabelle took a sip of her wine. "Well, at least she's ok now. Have there been any incidents since the banishment?"

"Nope." Mulder replied as he swished the wine in his glass. "Everything has been peachy keen."

"Good." Isabelle took another sip of her wine. "So, really Fox why did you really come here? I can sense it wasn't just to bring me a bottle of wine."

Mulder leaned toward her. "You're very perceptive, Isabelle."

Isabelle took another drink. "I…I am?"

Mulder nodded. "I did have something else on my mind besides sharing some cheap wine with a beautiful young lady."

Isabelle looked back at him. "I….what?"

Mulder reached out and took some hair, tucking it behind her ear. "Did anyone ever tell you how the fire reflecting on you brings out your beauty."

Isabelle could feel herself shaking at Mulder's closeness. "Fox, what…what are you doing?"

"What do you think?" He asked as he caressed her cheek.

"It…it looks like you're coming on to me." Isabelle whispered.

"Again your perception is correct, Isabelle. You are truly a master." He ran his fingers across her neck, as he looked deep into her eyes. "You think I didn't know that you wanted me that night in the apartment? Don't deny it. You know deep down, you did. Admit it, tell me."

Isabelle swallowed. "I….I did."

"And you still want me now, don't you?" Mulder asked as he ran his fingers over her lips. "Don't lie to me."

"Oh god, yes." Isabelle whispered.

"Then tell me. Tell me that you want me, Isabelle."

"But….what about Dana? You told me that you were…."

"We're just close friends and nothing else, Isabelle."

"You….you are?"

Mulder ran his hand slowly down Isabelle's button down top. "Yes, Isabelle. It is possible to be close friends with someone and still help them, right?" He dipped his hand into her cleavage. "Besides….she is nothing like you. " His finger brushed her nipple. "You are…sensual, desiring, passionate…."

Isabelle took in a breath as her nipples became erect. "Oh…oh god."

Mulder leaned into her ear. "Now tell me that you want me, Isabelle."

"I want you, Fox."

He traced her neck with his tongue. "Badly?"

"Oh god, yes. I want you very badly, Fox." Isabelle replied as she put her neck to the side.

Mulder took his lips off her neck and looked at her. "Then we both want the same thing." He then leaned forward and kissed her passionately. He grabbed her leg and pulled it up to his hip as he moved against her. He pulled back from her. "Can you feel how much I want you, Isabelle?" He pulled her closer to him.

Isabelle gasped as she felt his hardness against her. "Y…yes."

"You want to feel me inside you?"

"Yes."

Mulder reached forward and grabbed her hair, pulling her to him. "Want me to fuck you until you beg for mercy?"

Isabelle was surprised at Mulder's strong sense of tone and forcefulness but it didn't affect her enough to reconsider. In fact, for some strange reason, it aroused her. "Yes, I do."

Without another word, Mulder bent down and took her lips again in a fiery kiss. He then picked up Isabelle until her legs were wrapped around him and made his way toward the back bedroom. He threw her onto the bed, showing no gentleness whatsoever. He then pulled off his shirt and unbuttoned his blue jeans until he was standing in just his boxers. He then crawled onto the bed and over to Isabelle. "How long has it been since you've had a man in your bed, Isabelle? Do you always sleep here alone?"

Isabelle looked back at Mulder as she lay back on her elbows. "I'm tired of being alone."

"Then let me fulfill that for you." Mulder whispered as he pressed his lips to hers again. He deepened the kiss even more as he worked on slipping her shirt off and down her arms. He pulled up her arms and slipped it off before throwing it to the floor. He then moved his lips to her breasts and began to kiss them as he kneaded them with his hands. He could hear Isabelle moaning as he moved to a nipple and bit down on it with his teeth. His hand then wandered down her long skirt and pulled it up roughly.

"Fox." Isabelle breathed. She then felt his hand under her skirt, moving slowly up her leg until he reached her panties. His hand dove under them and started to tease her soft pink lips. She then cried out as he thrust his finger into her.

"Yeah, you like that, don't you?" Mulder taunted as he put two fingers into her and started to move in and out of her. He increased the pressure as he moved his fingers faster, pushing into her. He could hear her moaning as he continued to fuck her with his fingers. He then stopped and looked at her. "Take off your skirt, now."

Isabelle raised herself off the bed and slid her skirt down until it was completely off her. "I'm yours, Fox."

"Oh that you are, Isabelle." Mulder replied as he grabbed her panties and ripped them off roughly. He then reached down and slipped off his boxers. "I want to hear you, Isabelle." He positioned himself above her. "Let me here you." He then thrust into her.

Isabelle cried out as she felt Mulder enter her. She threw her head back and pushed back into him. She felt Mulder grab onto her hips as he continued slamming into her. She winced slightly as she felt his firm grip, which prevented her from moving.

As Mulder continued fucking her, he could feel his head spinning. He felt as if he weren't in control of his own actions. He sat up and grabbed Isabelle's legs roughly, placing them on his shoulders. He then pounded into her even harder. He could hear grunts escaping him as he fulfilled the need from deep within him. He was in complete control of his prey and nothing was going to stop him. "You belong to me now." He whispered as he continued to move almost violently inside of her. The moans he heard from Isabelle were completely ignored, all that mattered was what he wanted. He did a few more thrusts before he finally came hard inside of her. "Ah!" He then shuddered and threw his head back.

Below him, Isabelle struggled to catch her breath. She swallowed as Mulder let go of her legs and allowed them to settle back onto the bed. "Oh my…my god."

Mulder pulled himself out of her and moaned. "Was that payment enough?"

"I would say you more than paid for my services." Isabelle replied back as she sat back up and stared at him.

Mulder leaned toward her. "Remember, you belong to me now, Isabelle. We're one now. Say it."

"I belong to you." Isabelle whispered.

Mulder gave an evil smile before grabbing and pulling her to him roughly. He then kissed her passionately before pushing her back onto the bed.


	20. Scully's Revelation

Scully sat in a rocking chair looking out the window. As she stared out the window, she picked up her cross necklace and played with it between her fingers. It was this particular item, which had been responsible for sending Jeremy away and protecting her. And it had been placed around her by the one man she was thinking about now. The man she had opened herself up and given herself to. The man who she had contemplated deep feelings about before she had left for her mother's. But after his recent behavior, she wasn't sure what to think. She had isolated herself for the past few days, not wishing to speak to anyone. She had taken all of her meals from her room and spent the rest of her time alone. Luckily, her mother respected her wishes due to what she had been through lately. She heard a knock at the door and turned her head. "Come in."

Margaret Scully opened the door and smiled. "I brought you some soup and sandwiches."

Scully gave a half smile. "Thanks, Mom."

Margaret placed the plate down on a table in front of her. "I do what I can to take care of my daughter." She reached up her hand and touched the side of Scully's face. "How are you doing?"

"I'm…I'm ok."

"You know I hate seeing you shut yourself away like this, Dana. I understand you have been through a lot these past few weeks. But…I feel so helpless when you can't talk to me. Please, help me to understand so I can help you?"

"There is more going on then you realize, Mom."

Margaret took a seat on the floor in front of Scully. "Then tell me, Dana."

Scully sighed. "I made a choice and I'm not sure if it was the right one, now."

"What kind of choice?"

"I've been alone for so many years, not wanting to get close to anyone. I've….let my career basically consume me and not allow anything else." She shook her head. "Gosh, I'm starting to sound just like…"

"Fox?" Margaret asked with a smile. "I think you and Fox are more alike in some ways then you realize. Actually I was surprised you didn't try and contact him these past few days. You know he really cares for you, Dana."

"He…he told me he loved me, Mom." Scully whispered.

Margaret's eyes widened. "He…he did?"

Scully nodded. "He told me shortly after the first time I was in the hospital."

"Oh, Dana."

"He told me that it was ok if I didn't feel the same way and he didn't want to pressure me."

"So, what did you tell him?" Margaret asked as she shifted slightly on the floor.

"I told him….that I wasn't sure yet and that I needed some time."

"And now you're wondering if you made the right choice in telling him that? Dana, there is nothing wrong with contemplating something serious like love. Love is not just something you toss around. In my opinion it's a huge step. You have absolutely nothing to…"

"I slept with him, Mom."

"What?"

"When he brought me home from the hospital after my…..experience we made love." She closed her eyes. "And it was…..the most wonderful thing I have ever felt in my life, Mom. I felt as if I were floating out of my body and ascending into the heavens."

"What you shared with Fox is a very sacred thing, Dana. You speak of it as a very moving and special thing and yet you contemplate if you should have done it now? Why?"

"Because he changed."

Margaret looked back up at Scully from the floor. "What do you mean?"

"For the first few days it was wonderful. We spent every waking moment with each other and made love like there was no tomorrow. He was so….tender and loving toward me. I would love it when I would wake up in his strong arms and for the first time in years….I wasn't lonely anymore. For the first time in years I felt…loved and special."

"And how did he change, Dana?"

"When I was getting ready to leave with you, he told me he didn't want me to go."

"Well, I really think that's understandable after what happened between the two of you, don't you?"

"It's more then that, Mom. He…he started kissing me and pressuring me to have sex with him while I was trying to pack. He…he grabbed my wrist and it hurt. He was acing like a completely different person just before I left. And….up to that point I was contemplating my feelings about him. But…after he started acting that way…."

"Do you love him, Dana?"

"After the way he treated me just before I left? No."

"But before that happened, did you?"

Scully nodded her head slowly as a tear trickled down her cheek.

"Oh, Dana." Margaret rose up enough from the floor so that she could embrace her daughter warmly. "Why didn't you tell him?"

"Because I was afraid."

"Afraid?" Margaret asked as she stroked the back of Scully's head. "Afraid of what, sweetie?"

"Afraid that once I admit I love him that I will somehow lose him. That he will leave me and I will be hurt again just like with Jack and Daniel."

"Dana, you can't compare Fox to the other men you've known in your life. Each man you've known is different in his own way and….it's those reasons that drew you to him at that time. Fox, is the same way but you have known him much longer then Jack or Daniel. You and Fox….have shared experiences that no one else has. You have risked your very lives to help one another. If that isn't love, Dana then I don't know what is. But…in my opinion it's beyond the typical love between a man and woman, it's something much deeper."

"Then why did he act that way toward me before I left, Mom?" Scully asked raising her voice slightly. "Why did he act so cold?"

"Well, did you think that maybe he acted the way he did because he didn't want you to go? That…he came across the way he did because he didn't know how to completely convey those feelings to you? Men are different then we are, Dana. They don't always show emotion the same way that we do. Maybe…he came across to you that way because he didn't express things the way he wanted? I honestly don't believe he intended to hurt you and make you feel like you are now, Dana."

"Why is that?"

Margaret pulled back from Scully and looked at her. "Because when you were in the hospital, Fox was putting his career and reputation on the line in regards to what happened to you. He was almost tried for shooting the man who raped you, for murder, Dana. He would have lost his job and gone to prison but he didn't care. As far as he was concerned, your rapist was dead and that was all that mattered to him. I found him…many nights at your hospital bedside, kneeling with your hand in his own. If he could have, he would have stayed there the whole time until you woke up from your coma. And you should have seen the look on his face when I agreed to let him take you in. He was just like a little boy on Christmas morning. You would have thought I had given him a gold bar." She smiled. "That is how I know he didn't mean to hurt you and make you upset, Dana. Did you ever think that he didn't want you to leave because he is afraid that something might happen to you too? That..maybe in the back of his mind, he is afraid that you may leave out that door and never come back?"

Scully shook her head. "No, I…I guess I hadn't thought of that." Her eyes sparkled slightly. "Did…did he really spend all that time at my bedside when I was in the hospital?"

Margaret nodded. "I wouldn't lie to you, Dana. He loves you."

Scully placed her head in her hands and cried. "Oh, god. I was such an idiot to think he would hurt me."

Margaret reached forward and touched the side of Scully's face. "You have both been through a lot, Dana. Stress is bound to make things happen. Remember how he acted to you before you left. Hold onto that for making your choice."

Scully took her hands from her face. "I've already made that choice, Mom."

"And?"

"I….I love him." Scully whispered.

Margaret smiled and took her hand. "Do you, Dana?"

"I can't believe I just actually admitted that after all this time. And I didn't hesitate as much either." She paused. "I love him. There I said it again." She looked at Margaret with a new life in her face. "I love him, Mom! I love, Fox Mulder!" She then burst out laughing before hugging her mother tightly.

"I'm so glad you admitted your true feelings, Dana." She pulled back and looked at her. "So, what are you going to do now?"

"I….I need to go back and tell him." She wiped the tears from her face. "Oh god, I…I have to pack!"

Margaret smiled. "You eat your soup and sandwiches and I'll take of your packing."

Scully reached forward and hugged Margaret tightly. "Oh, thank you Mom! Thank you for helping me to see what I was afraid to!"

"Anytime, Dana." Margaret pulled back. "Now, let's see about getting you packed and headed back to Fox, shall we?"

* * *

Isabelle lay on her bed with her wrists handcuffed to a post. Her legs were spread and being held forcefully by Mulder who was on top of her. She could hear his moans and grunts as he pushed himself into her again and again. The first time they had made love, she had liked it. She hadn't even minded the slight roughness that Mulder had used in his technique. She was always up for something different when it came to the sex department. Besides, afterwards the cuddling and quality time they spent together made it worthwhile. It had been forever since she had nice dinners and walks with a man. The last few days for her had been wonderful and up to then, she was glad that she had met, Fox Mulder. But that had all changed today. He had been adding different kinds of techniques to their sex sessions. First starting with something simple like handcuffs and blindfolds but now he was starting to get into the more rough bondage. She wasn't quite sure what to think of it at this point.

"Yeah! Yeah!" Mulder shouted as he pounded into Isabelle. "You like that, bitch don't you?"

Isabelle winced as Mulder grabbed her ankles firmly and pulled her legs up higher above her head. "Ow, Fox. That….that's hurting."

Isabelle's pleas fell onto deaf ears as Mulder continued slamming into her. He then cried out and shuddered as he released into her. "Fuck!" He closed his eyes and panted.

"Fox, please….please let go of my legs now."

"Yeah, sure." Mulder replied before letting go of Isabelle's ankles and letting her legs lower to the bed. He moved off her and to the side. "Damn, that was the best one yet."

Isabelle trembled and pulled on the cuffs. "Can you please…"

Mulder looked down at her. "Why? I kind of like you all chained to the bed." He touched her hair. "Makes you look like a helpless little kitten."

"Please, the cuffs are hurting my wrists."

"You'll get used to it after a while." Mulder answered before reaching over to the nightstand and retrieving the key to the handcuffs. "Your toleration will get better as time goes on." He took the key and unlocked Isabelle's wrists from the cuffs.

Isabelle brought her arms down to her side. She could feel pain coursing through her body from being restrained for so long. She then glanced at her wrists and could see the red marks on them. Now, she knew it had been too rough. But at least she would have some cuddling to make her feel better.

Mulder was lying on his side when he heard his cell ring. He reached over and answered it. "Yeah?"

"Mulder? It's…it's me."

"Scully?" Mulder asked as he sat up on the bed.

"Yeah."

Mulder rose up from the bed and walked over to a corner. "I thought you weren't speaking to me anymore?"

"A person can make a mistake, can't they?"

"I suppose. So, what did you want?"

"Well, I've been doing some thinking these past few days and….well I want to come back."

"Now?"

"Please, Mulder. I really need to talk with you. And….I'm sorry about how I treated you when I left."

"Yeah, well you hurt me pretty bad, Scully."

"Can't..can't we just talk?"

Mulder sighed. "All right. Come on over and we'll talk." He then hung up his cell and walked back over to the bed. He placed his cell on the nightstand and grabbed his boxers and jeans.

Isabelle sat up in the bed and pulled the sheet around her. "Fox?" She watched as he put on his clothes. "What is it?"

"I have to go." Mulder answered as he buttoned up his jeans.

"What? Now? But…..I thought you were going to stay and maybe we could…"

"Well, there's been a change of plans now. Besides, you got what you wanted, right?"

Isabelle looked back at him as if she had just been slapped in the face. "Is that….what you think? That the only reason I am with you is for a good fuck?"

"Let's not kid ourselves, Isabelle."

Tears came to Isabelle's eyes as she grasped onto the sheet. "I….I can't believe you are saying this. Is that all I mean to you? That I'm just a convenience whenever you need it? Who was that on your cell?"

"Isabelle, I really can't talk about this right now." Mulder answered as he put his shirt back over his head.

"What's happened to you, Fox? You used to be tender, almost romantic and lately you don't want to cuddle anymore. The only time you come over here for is to have sex with me." She looked at him as a tear trickled down her cheek. "I mean…what's happened to us, Fox?"

Mulder sighed and took a seat on the edge of the bed. He took her hand gently. "Isabelle, I do care about you. I've just…been going through a lot of things lately." He moved his hand to her face. "Look, I promise when I get back that I'll make up to you ok?"

"But….why do you have to go?"

Mulder paused. "An old friend of mine is dealing with a situation. His….mother committed suicide and…"

Isabelle gasped. "Oh god."

"Yeah, so he needs to just see me and talk about some things."

Isabelle smiled. "I understand, Fox. It's important that you help him."

"I promise that I'll make this up to you, I swear."

"I know you will." Isabelle rubbed his cheek gently. "Go to him, Fox."

"You're sure?"

"I'm positive. That's what friends are for, right? Don't worry about me, I'll be here when you get back."

Mulder leaned forward and kissed Isabelle passionately. He then pulled back. "I'll call you." He then kissed her again before moving off the bed and heading to the door. As he stepped out into the hallway, he shook his head. What was happening to him? It was Scully he loved right? If so, then why was he just with Isabelle? He then started walking to the elevator to head back to his apartment.

* * *

**NOTE:** First of all, I would like to apologize for it taking so long to update this fic. RL has been VERY stressful for me lately making it difficult for me to concentrate on my writing. It truly meant a lot for me to receive the emails from people who were enjoying this fic and asked for me to continue it. Yes, I also admit that some of the comments I was receiving were upsetting me BUT those of who you emailed me to counteract that, helped so THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart! I guess it's just that I am dealing every day with people in RL who make me feel like a lesser person and the LAST thing I need are people doing the same to me here. So, I have one thing to say, if you DON'T like what you are reading here, then don't read it! If you think you are such a critic then why don't you try writing this! You think it is EASY coming out with these chapters?YEAH RIGHT! Not to mention the fact that I am writing Fox Mulder the way I am and it kills me! So, anyway, thank you again to those of you who continue to read this. I will try and keep updating as much as I can. Thank you for understanding.

Dana


	21. Reconnecting

As Mulder made his way back toward his apartment, his mind was teeming with images and thoughts. The past few days all seemed like a blur to him. He glanced down at his hands and saw a quick image showing blood on them. Another image then flashed of him slamming Isabelle into the headboard as he fucked her relentlessly. He shook his head. Had he done these things to Isabelle? What was he doing with her in the first place? He loved Scully not Isabelle. He was trying desperately to remember what had happened when he and Scully had last spoken. He could see Scully standing by the door with tears in her eyes. Was he the reason for her crying? And now he was coming from the home of another woman, which would cause even more pain to her. How could he explain these things to her when even HE didn't understand himself? He had heard of cases with people suffering from unexplainable bouts of memory loss, waking up in places not knowing where they were. Another thought then came to him: was this a case of alien abduction? Is that what was happening to him every night? Did Isabelle have something to do with his abductions? Were they connected somehow? That had to be the reason for there could be nothing else between them. What other possible reason could there be for him to be with another woman? He didn't know just how he was going to explain things to Scully but he knew he had to try. He took out his key from his pocket and went to unlock the door but found it had already been done. He swallowed slightly as he realized there was only one other person who had a key. "Scully?" He called out as he opened the door. As he glanced around the apartment he could see many candles lit and picked up the faint smell of incense. This was not what he had expected at all. He had planned on some time to get himself together before having to deal with Scully. He closed the door behind him.

"I'm over here." Scully called back from the kitchen.

Mulder turned and walked toward the kitchen. "Scully, what are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Scully asked as she looked back at him. "I'm cooking, silly."

"I can see that." Mulder answered. "I guess the question I meant to ask is WHY are you cooking and what are you doing here?"

"I just thought I would surprise you. I mean, I know I could have just brought you over take out or…or even made this for you at my apartment but….

"I guess I just didn't expect you to be at my apartment, Scully. I had…planned on cleaning things up a bit before you got here. As you can see it's quite the mess."

"Mulder, remember I've seen your apartment MANY times before. It wouldn't be the first time I'd seen it in a state of disarray."

"Point taken. What are you making anyway?"

"Well, I thought we might take a second take on that gourmet meal." Scully answered. "Since the….unfortunate incident in my apartment which resorted to pizza."

"Hey, I tried."

Scully went back to making her chicken dish. "I have to admit I was surprised to find that you weren't here."

"Yeah, I uh stepped out for something."

"Must be a record for you because I've been here for nearly an hour." She turned to look at him. "Long errand?"

"Yeah, you could say that."

"Look, I know we didn't leave on good terms, Mulder. And I just want to…"

Mulder put his hand. "Look, Scully if you don't mind I need to clean up a bit. I had actually planned to do that when I got back here."

"Oh."

"Let's just say it's been a hell of a day and leave it at that." Mulder muttered. "Look, I promise I'll be quick ok? It won't interfere with your food plan, I promise."

"Well, it is your apartment after all, isn't it? It's only fair you get to use your own bathroom. I am technically a guest here."

"Scully, I'm not trying to make an issue here. How long till the food is ready?"

"Fifteen minutes."

"Perfect. Fifteen minutes is all the time I need to clean up."

Scully sighed. "All right but one minute longer and I eat your food."

Mulder smiled back at her and then headed into the bathroom. He quickly closed the door behind him and took deep breaths. He had truly not counted on Scully being here so soon. He was still trying to get things together in his mind on what had been happening. It almost appeared as if she already suspected something. What if Isabelle tried to call his apartment? She didn't have his home number did she? He moved away from the door and looked at himself in the mirror. 'It's ok, Mulder. Get a hold of yourself. You can't let yourself be upset over this or she will see right through you.'

* * *

Scully continued making her chicken dinner in the kitchen. It was true that she was kind of wondering just why Mulder was acting a little peculiar. But she mainly just rubbed it off due to the fact that is was she who had just shown up at his apartment unannounced. It was obvious that he had not expected that so how else would she have expected him to act? She was now beginning to wonder if showing up unannounced and making dinner was such a good thing. At this point, the last thing she wanted to do was make him upset. As she stared at her chicken in the pot, she kept getting the feeling that she was forgetting something. She pulled out her cell and called her mother. "Hi Mom. It's Dana." 

"Hello, Dana. I didn't quite expect to hear from you so soon. Are you at Fox's?"

"Yes, Mom and I'm making dinner just like we discussed."

"The chicken dish I told you about? Oh good! It's nice to know that my mother's recipe is making the rounds. Did you have a question about something on it perhaps?"

"Actually, yes I did." Scully paused. "I couldn't remember if you said to put the cherries in the sauce before I bake it or after?"

"Oh of course, that is an important part of the dish." Margaret replied back. "Well, actually you take the cherries and you place them in the sauce before you bake it. See then when the chicken is baking in the oven, it allows the cherries to soften up and give it that special taste." She then noticed Scully's silence. "Dana? Is something wrong?"

"How did you guess?"

"This isn't because of your cooking is it? Is it Fox? Did you tell him how you feel yet?"

"No, I haven't and to be honest we have not exactly 'gotten off on the right foot' so to speak."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I shouldn't have just come here unannounced, Mom. It's very clear to me that he is uncomfortable with this situation." Scully sighed. "If he is feeling this way then how he is going to act when I tell him that I love him?"

"Regardless of the situation you have created you are in it now, Dana. You said that you love, Fox and now is the time to prove it. If you truly do love him then you will look over these negative feelings you have. And if he loves you the way he claims then he will look over any uncomfortablness he has as well. Walk away from this opportunity, Dana and there may not be another. And then you will question the rest of your life with 'what ifs'. You don't want that do you?"

"No. No, I…I don't." Scully paused. "All right, Mom. I'll…I'll go through with this."

"That's my girl. Now I'll leave you to your dinner. And Dana?"

"Yes, Mom?"

"You call me later and let me know how things went, all right?"

"I will. Thanks, Mom."

"Anytime, Dana."

Scully hung up her cell and placed it on the table. She thought about what her mom had told her and then cleared her throat. "Now, let's see about those cherries, shall we?"

* * *

Mulder stood in front of the mirror, shaving off the last of his stubble. In the time that Scully had been gone, he had not shaved once. He actually wondered why she hadn't said anything to him about it. He had gone before with 'five o'clock shadow' and she had practically lectured him. So why not this time? There were so many things he didn't understand right now and he just hoped that Scully wouldn't question him or he wouldn't have any answers. As he stood there wrapped in a towel, he let out a sigh. Normally taking a shower helped to relax him but not in this case. If only the water he had been standing over could really wash away pain and worry. If only the water could wash away this person he had become and allow the old 'Mulder' to re-emerge. But no, he was stuck with this person he had created and nothing could change it except the one who made it. He then heard a knock on the door. 

"Mulder?"

"Yeah?"

"Your meal is ready."

"Ok, Scully. I'll….I'll be right there." Mulder rinsed his face and took a towel to wipe it. He knew there was no going back now. It was time to face his 'demons' so to speak. He unwrapped his towel and pulled on his boxers and blue jeans. He winced as more images came of him violating Isabelle. And then the image changed slightly as it became composed of blood. He could see blood on the sheets and the walls. He could then see a figure standing over Isabelle holding a knife. "No!"

Scully could hear Mulder's cry from the kitchen. "Mulder?" She walked back up to the bathroom door and knocked. "Mulder, are you ok?"

Mulder stood against the wall struggling to catch his breath. "Yeah, I'm fine." Oh great she had heard him. He would have to think of something quick. "It….it was just a big spider that came down from the ceiling while I was shaving."

"A spider?" Scully asked in a confused voice on the other side of the door.

Mulder opened the bathroom door and was now fully clothed. "Yeah. You've never had that happen before? I mean, I may be a man Scully but when an eight-legged spider comes down from nowhere and dangles in front of me while I'm trying to shave, it tends to startle me."

"Well, judging by that scream, it must have been a pretty large spider."

"Bite your head off man." Mulder replied back with a grin. "And I did NOT scream."

Scully gave him a look. "Sure. Fine. Whatever." She then headed back to the kitchen.

It appeared that things were back to normal between them. She had obviously bought the spider incident even though it had made him look like a wuss. Mulder walked after her. "Hey, I didn't!"

* * *

Mulder wiped his face with a napkin. "Well, that was definitely better than pizza." 

"Well, I'm glad you liked it." Scully replied as she took a sip of her wine. "And we even managed to have wine without getting drunk."

"Yeah but remember what happened the last time we did that?" Mulder asked giving her a wink.

"Actually…that's what I wanted to talk to you about."

Mulder took on a bewildered expression. "Oh?"

Scully took a deep breath. "That night that we made love…it changed things forever."

Mulder swallowed. He should have known this happy atmosphere was too good to be true. "Are…are you saying you regret it now? Is that what you're trying to tell me?"

"What?" Scully shook her head. "No. No, that's…that's not what I'm trying to say."

"Huh?"

Scully put down her wine glass and reached over taking his hand. "That night….was the most wonderful night of my life, Mulder. It…it showed just how much you truly cared for me. And…it allowed me to be free for one of first time in years. It meant more to me then you will ever know."

Now he could feel the guilt settling in about being with Isabelle. "Scully…"

"Please, now it's your turn to let me finish." Scully replied with a half smile. "While I've been at Mom's I've….I've been doing a lot of thinking. I've been trying to trace through things in my mind that involve us. What we've been through together and how we've conquered so many challenges. And I've come to the conclusion that I wouldn't have made it this far without you."

"Scully, without me you could have been a medical doctor. You would have still had a sister…"

"And if it wasn't for you I would have died at the hands of a serial killer." Scully replied back. "I would…be lying in a morgue as the latest victim of Jeremy Reinsfeld. Instead, I am sitting here on a couch in your apartment, expressing to you how I feel."

"How…how you feel?"

Scully stroked his hand, as she looked deep into his eyes. "I know some terrible things have happened to us along the way but I don't blame it on you. I never did, Mulder. Without you my life would have been boring. I would have been living a normal, every day life with no kind of adventure. Not to mention you have opened up my eyes to so much. You've allowed me to see that there are more things out there beyond the realms of science." She chuckled. "And to think that the first time that I met you, I told you that there were no answers beyond the realm of science."

"Yes, I seem to recall that."

"What I'm trying to say is…" Scully took a breath. "I love you."

Mulder's eyes widened. Oh no she was NOT doing this to him! Not now! He couldn't let her confess such a thing to him before she knew the facts. He cared too much for her to let her get hurt. "Scully, listen to me."

"Did you hear what I said? I love you, Fox Mulder." Scully replied as her eyes twinkled.

"Scully, when you left….things changed."

"It was wrong of me to leave you the way I did."

Mulder sighed. "Scully, my behavior is inexcusable."

"I forgive you." Scully answered as she touched the side of his face.

Mulder blinked his eyes at her in disbelief. "I….you….what?"

"I know you acted the way you did because you've been stressing out. Because…we've been through so much lately. It was wrong of me not to be sensitive to your feelings, Mulder. And….I acted the way I did toward you because I was in denial of what I really felt for you. Sometimes….it takes some solitude and soul-searching to discover what is deep within us. But I know now." She then reached forward and kissed him gently.

Mulder returned her kiss for a moment and pulled back. "Scully, there's some things you don't understand about me."

"Then we'll discover them together." Scully whispered back before taking his lips again.

Mulder pulled back from her breathlessly. "You don't know what you're asking."

Scully ran her finger down his chest. "Yes, I do know." She then kissed him again passionately.

As Mulder felt her passionate kiss, he could feel his uneasiness melting away. There were no images in his head, no screaming. The only thing he felt was the love he had for this beautiful woman in his arms. Nothing else mattered to him now except spending this night with her. Tonight, he would spend his time reconnecting with her and remembering just who Fox Mulder was. His arms snaked around her until he was able to gently pick her up. He looked back at her for a moment before taking her lips in a fiery kiss. He then carried her back to his bedroom and closed the door.

* * *

**NOTE: **Just wanted to say thank-you to those of you who continue to read this. Again I apologize for not updating every week but RL makes it hard. I am hoping it will improve though as I am anxious myself to finish this!lol. I am going to be going on a MUCH needed vacation this week but wanted to get this chapter up before I left. I hope you enjoy it and there will be more to come I assure you! 

Dana


	22. Finding The Truth Too Late

Days had passed and things had been calm. Mulder had experienced few nightmares and the voices in his head had stopped. His meetings with Isabelle in motel rooms had lessened until they stopped completely. He had finally told Isabelle that it was over between them and that he had chosen Scully. Isabelle had sadly accepted his decision but she couldn't feel that there was something wrong. He had gone from being a sadistic, hurtful man to the tender and compassionate man she had first met that night in Scully's apartment. Was it some kind of personality disorder? That had to be the only explanation. After all, Mulder had gone through a lot of stress lately.

Now, she was waiting in a motel room but not for the same reasons as in the past. A few days ago she had experienced morning sickness and had felt her breasts becoming tender. Her psychic intuition told her what it might be but she didn't want to believe it. Then she had gone to the drug store and purchased a home pregnancy test, which gave her the answer that she had dreaded. She was pregnant. She was a single woman, pregnant with another man's child. She was in the situation she was in because of her own stupid mistakes, her lust. And now she had to tell him and assume the consequences. She heard the knock at the door and looked up from the bed she was sitting on. "Come…come in."

The room door opened and Fox Mulder stood in the doorway. "Isabelle, you wanted to see me?"

"Yes. Please…please come in and close the door."

Mulder closed the door behind him. "Isabelle, I thought I told you that I couldn't see you anymore."

"I didn't ask you here to have sex, Fox."

Mulder walked over to the bed and took a seat. "What is it, Isabelle?"

"I know…that you told me you don't want to see me anymore. But…I need you."

Mulder sighed. "Isabelle, I already told you that I'm happy with Dana. I love her and am hoping to eventually…"

"I'm pregnant." Isabelle replied, interrupting him.

Mulder looked at her dumbfounded. "Wha…what?"

Isabelle lowered her head. "I'm pregnant, Fox."

"Are…are you sure?"

"I took a home pregnancy test and it was positive."

"But those things have a percentage of error. So it's possible that…"

Isabelle raised her head. "I have all the symptoms, Fox. I have a psychic intuition remember? I only needed the pregnancy test to confirm it."

Mulder turned away from her. "Are you sure it's mine?"

"You're the only man I've been sleeping with, Fox. There has been no one else."

Mulder rose up from the bed. The words that Isabelle had just told him were like daggers in his heart. He and Scully had finally confessed their love for one another. They had patched things up and he was hopelessly in love with her. He had even planned on proposing to her when the time was right. And now…there was another woman pregnant with his child. A woman he did not love. "Do you want me to go with you to a clinic?"

"A clinic?"

"To have an abortion."

Isabelle looked up at him. "What?"

"Well, you aren't planning on actually keeping it, are you?"

Isabelle couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You….you want me to kill my baby? Murdering a baby goes against everything I believe in, Fox."

Mulder ran his hand through his hair. "Isabelle, I told you that I can't be with you. I'm in love with Scully."

Isabelle shook her head as tears streamed down her cheeks. "I can't believe this. You're expecting me to kill an innocent baby! You want me to destroy a life because you can't accept the consequences of your actions! It's your fault that I'm pregnant!"

"Isabelle, you…you can't have this child."

"Why not?"

Mulder looked down at the floor. "Because if Scully finds out that I got you pregnant she will never forgive me."

"So, you just expect me to go against my beliefs and kill a baby because you're afraid to tell Dana that you couldn't control yourself? That you screwed up! No, Fox! I won't do it!"

Mulder turned around and looked at her. "And you think you can raise a baby on your own! A psychic who can barely pay her rent? What kind of life will you provide for a child that is around tarot cards and candles?"

Isabelle rose up from the bed and spat at him. "Fuck you!"

"You can't raise a child and you know it, Isabelle."

"Oh yeah? Well, I'll prove you wrong, Fox!" Isabelle shouted back as she put her hands on her hips. "I'm going to have this baby and I'm going to raise it by myself!"

"What?"

"That's right." She walked up to Mulder. "I am going to have this child, Fox. I'm going to have YOUR child."

Mulder grabbed Isabelle by the wrist. "Don't be a fool, Isabelle!"

"Oh, on the contrary, Fox YOU'RE the fool!" She paused. "Maybe I should call Dana and let her know about our little news hmmm? I wonder what she would think if her boyfriend/lover was not the innocent man she thought? Would she be…so keen to fall into your arms every night? Would she let you make love to her?"

Mulder applied pressure to her wrist. "Don't you dare!" He growled.

"Let go of me or I cry murder!" Isabelle replied back at him narrowing her eyes.

Mulder reluctantly let go of Isabelle's wrist. "Don't do it, Isabelle. If you tell her, I'll make you regret it."

Isabelle smirked. "I'm going to go home and do a reading to find out what the sex is. That way I'll know when I call Dana to let her know if it's a boy or a girl." She then walked away from Mulder and headed out the door.

"Don't do it, Isabelle!" Mulder yelled after her from the doorway. Isabelle was pregnant and she was going to delight in telling Scully. And he knew once Scully found out that he had impregnated Isabelle, it would all be over. He winced as he felt a pain in his head. The headaches were returning. "No…no please." He whispered.

* * *

Isabelle sat in a room with lit candles and burning incense. The sound of faint classical music could be heard in the background as she sat in front of a cauldron. She then took some charcoal and placed them inside the cauldron. Producing a candle lighter she then proceeded to light them on fire, causing an odor to fill the air. Reaching over to a tube, she sprinkled some of its powdery substance into the cauldron causing a slight spark. "Oh, great spirits show me what I long to know." She whispered as she looked into the smoky cauldron. 

The smoke began to part around the cauldron revealing the inside of it. Some smoke began to billow slightly from some of the charcoals. And as Isabelle stared into it, images began to form. The first image she saw was of a fetus. She gasped as her eyes fell upon it. "My baby." She whispered. "Yes, show me what sex it is." She watched as the smoke changed shape slightly causing the fetus to take on a more masculine form. "It's…it's a boy. I have a beautiful baby boy growing inside of me."

The fetus's head then changed shape again until it had a scar on its cheek and penetrating green eyes. It then looked at Isabelle and gave an evil smile.

Isabelle screamed as she instantly recognized what appearance the fetus had taken on. "Oh my god….no! It…it can't be!" She then heard a knock at her door and the image instantly disappeared. She turned toward the door. "Who is it?" Not receiving an answer, she got up from the floor and headed back into the living room. "Who's there?" She then walked up to the door. "Fox, if…if this is you I told you I'm not changing my mind! I'm going to keep this baby whether you like it or not!" She opened the door to find Mulder standing there with a teddy bear in his hand. "What do you want?"

"I brought it for our baby." Mulder replied as he held out the teddy bear to her.

"OUR baby?" Isabelle asked confused.

"Look, I made a mistake earlier. Can I come in? I mean, I do look pretty silly standing here in a hallway holding a teddy bear, don't you think?"

"I don't know if I should."

"Isabelle, I'm a man standing with a teddy bear. I think that should show you I mean no ill will in being here. Please?"

Isabelle sighed. "All right but you can't stay long." She then motioned Mulder inside.

Mulder stepped inside with the teddy bear and looked around at the smoke filled room. "Did I interrupt something?"

Isabelle closed the door. "As a matter of fact you did. I was…performing a kind of ritual."

Mulder placed the teddy bear on an end of the couch. "A ritual, huh? About the baby?"

Isabelle nodded. "Yes. I wanted to see what the sex was."

Mulder stood in the center of the room. "And? What did you find out?"

"A boy." Isabelle answered. "I'm….I'm going to have a baby boy."

"You sound apprehensive." Mulder replied as he took a look around the room.

"I…I saw something else. Something that scared me greatly."

"What did you see?" Mulder asked as his eyes fell upon a statue.

"I saw….I saw the fetus change shape. It…it had a scratch across it's cheek and….and green eyes. It looked like….Jeremy."

Mulder chuckled. "Jeremy? Do you mean Jeremy Reinsfeld?"

"Yes! That's exactly what I mean. How…how did you know?"

Mulder turned to smile at her. "I'm an investigator remember, Isabelle? It's in my nature." He paused. "So, what do you think it means?"

"Well, if he appeared as a fetus…I guess it's a symbol? A….a symbol of rebirth or…or of reincarnation?"

"That's pretty good, Isabelle. I'm impressed. You truly are a psychic after all."

Isabelle looked at Mulder and her stomach clenched. "Oh my….my god."

"What's wrong, Isabelle?" Mulder asked as he walked toward her. "Something frightening you?"

"The banishment failed." Isabelle whispered. "Oh my god, it failed."

"You really are quite intelligent for a female do you know that? I really began to wonder if you would figure it out during the times that we were together. You can imagine my surprise now when I see you finally have."

Isabelle backed away from him. "Keep….keep away from me."

"Oh come on, Isabelle we did have some good times, right?"

Isabelle continued backing up until she found herself against a wall. Now she was cornered like a mouse. And the cat was just within reach. "Stay away from me!"

"Now you know that unnecessary stress will cause a problem for the baby." Mulder replied as he stepped up to her. He then grabbed her by the hair. "You know it's very rude of you to try and back away from me. I don't like that, Isabelle. If there is one thing I can't stand it's a woman who is rude to me."

"Please, let me go."

Mulder pulled her head toward him. "Did you really think it was Fox Mulder who was fucking you? Hmmm? Did you think it was him who made you cry out and beg for mercy each time I pounded into you? Did you think it was him who made you come hard? Oh no that was me baby."

Isabelle looked into Mulder's eyes. "Oh god…."

Mulder reached into his pocket and produced a knife. He then placed under Isabelle's throat. "You see herein lies a dilemma. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have had this second chance at life. I'd still be…wondering around in my own spiritual hell. Why do you think I chose not to kill you, hmmm? Why do you think I chose to fuck you and give you what you wanted? The chance to live out my fantasies through you?" He paused. "But then you had to go and get pregnant, Isabelle. And not only that but you had to threaten me about keeping it and telling Dana. I just can't have that. I can't have you ruin my master plan."

Tears streamed down Isabelle's cheeks. "Please…..please don't hurt me."

Mulder placed the knife close to Isabelle's jugular. "I told you I would make you pay, Isabelle. But you wouldn't listen. And now….you will." He took the knife away from Isabelle's throat and slammed her head against the wall causing her to go unconscious, sliding down the floor. He then picked her up from the floor and carried her to the bedroom, tossing her roughly onto the bed.

Isabelle's eyes half opened to reveal Mulder standing at the foot of the bed taking off his pants. Her eyes widened as his naked form came toward her. "No….oh god please no! My baby!" She screamed only to have her mouth covered. The next thing she felt was searing pain all through her body as she was violated. She bit her tongue in the struggle causing blood to fill her mouth. As she tasted her own blood, she could hear the grunts and groans as he ripped her vagina fiercely with his penetration. Her eyes took on the look of sheer terror as she looked back at her perpetrator and saw not Fox Mulder but Jeremy Reinsfeld leering at her. She closed her eyes and tears stained her cheeks as her body gave into its natural instinct and gave Jeremy what he wanted. As she felt him shudder on top of her, he made an almost inhuman cry. She lay on the bed, broken with her entire body feeling nothing but pain. As she felt her mouth uncovered she started to sob. "Fox….help….help me."

"Fox, can't help you now." Mulder whispered in her ear. "His soul belongs to me as will Dana's soon." He then produced the knife he had held earlier and placed it to her neck. "And now…so does yours and your baby's." He then took the knife and slashed Isabelle across the throat. Taking a finger, he wiped some of her blood on it and then brought it to his mouth. He moaned as the slightly bitter taste reached his tongue. "Now, there will be no one to stop me." He then gave an evil smile.

* * *

**NOTE: **I can literally hear all the gasps out there right now as you read this!lol Please keep in mind that it is NOT my intention to make this a soap opera as some people think. I had to get some things established to lead to others. Anyway, thank you to those of you who keep reading this, your reviews are GREATLY appreciated! Sorry the updates aren't as frequent but I'm trying! And as if you couldn't figure it out by now...YES MULDER IS POSSESSED!lol And there is MORE to come!

Dana


	23. Mulder's Purpose Revealed

Mulder lay on the bed next to Scully. His face twitched and his closed eyes were moving back and forth. He was having the dreams again. He could hear the screams and see the blood all around him. And this time he knew who the person was that was being put through that agony. He watched from across the room as if he were watching a movie. He could see himself forcing himself on her and hear her screaming in pain. He could see tears streaming down her cheeks as she begged him to stop. And then…he saw himself with the knife and cutting her throat. All he could do was stand there helplessly as he witnessed this horrific event. As he watched the blood pour down the side of the bed, he felt nausea overcome him. "What have you done?" He then watched in horror as the face changed from his own to the very man that had been the cause of all his pain in the past weeks. "Oh my god….Jeremy?"

Jeremy looked back at Mulder. "What have I done? Oh no G-Man it's what have YOU done?"

Mulder looked at Isabelle's body. "No, I…I didn't do any of this."

Jeremy shook his head. "Tsk, tsk G-Man. Now don't try and tell me you don't remember. Remember how you wanted to kill her?" He walked toward Mulder slowly. "When you found out that she was pregnant with your child? You told her she would pay, didn't you?"

"No…"

"I know how much you wanted her when you first saw her." Jeremy continued. "It was the first thing I felt when I entered you. You knew it was wrong to desire her and that is what intrigued me most. I could feel…that dark side to you and fed on it like a drug addict. We all have that dark side to us G-Man, it just depends on if we choose to utilize it or not. You think that you are some kind of saint because you've been out there studying serial killers trying to save the world. You keep yourself in denial for that dark side of you not realizing that it is far more dangerous than just accepting it."

"I…I don't know what you're talking about."

Jeremy smiled as he stopped inches from Mulder. "Oh, I think you do. You really think that you could study about serial killers all those years with no side effects? That you could…get into their minds and find out why they do what they do without being drawn in yourself? That after reading all that material, seeing videotapes of women being bound, beaten and raped that it wouldn't take its affect on you?" He shook his head. "Oh no, G-Man."

Mulder swallowed. "I…am in no way like you. I'm not a man who gets off on raping and killing women!"

Jeremy laughed. "Stop kidding yourself G-Man it will only make it worse." He tilted his head. "You enjoyed seeing Dana bound to that bed when you came upon us didn't you? You liked it when…I had that knife to her throat and cut her causing her to scream out in pain. You like how she screamed. It was like music to your ears."

"Stop…stop it."

"You know what's so intriguing about a scream, G-Man? It's the fact that it's one of the times a person can actually exhibit their emotions with no inhibitions whatsoever. And….it gives you the feeling of power."

"No…"

"And you haven't really had that power in your life. Have you G-Man? Oh sure, you've gone against authority but I'm talking about women here. You've always done what they wanted, haven't you? They used you for just a good fuck and left you swinging in the breeze. No woman ever wanted to truly love you. No woman could. All those times the women at the FBI looked at you and snickered. It was because they knew what an easy lay you really were. And you….you thought of taking them back to your apartment and showing them just how much they were right. Only you wanted to fuck them until they begged you for mercy. Until they apologized for what they said about you. That played in your mind over and over but you refused to act it out. Because….you didn't want to believe that you would do something like that. So instead you resorted back to your porn not realizing that that was just repressing it but not making it go away." He paused. "And then…along came sweet, Dana to change all that."

Mulder closed his eyes and could feel his heart racing. It was like Jeremy was in his mind and knew all of his deepest thoughts! A serial killer in HIS mind. Jeremy was definitely unlike any other serial killer he had ever known or studied. And the sad thing was, Mulder could not deny what he was saying. He had had those thoughts in the past before about women at the FBI. He had every reason to be angry with them! And what man wouldn't think those thoughts because he was angry? It was human nature! His eyes then opened again at the mention of Scully. "No, I never had those thoughts about Scully."

"No, not at first you didn't." Jeremy answered. "That was because she was intelligent and not just some long legged bimbo. You found it was her brain that you were more interested in then any thing else. And…she also started to fulfill that power you were seeking. She challenged your ideas but in the end it was you who ended up being the victor in most cases. And because of that, it pleased you. But you couldn't hide your feelings for her long. It all started with simple gestures like hugs, holding hands and maybe a kiss on the cheek. Because you spent so much time with her, you found those feelings returning. You would try and see just how far down you could see in her blouse when she leaned forward. You would look down at her breasts and barely see the nipple under her bra. And all you could think of was reaching down your lips to it and sucking it. And then you would think about pushing her onto the desk and fucking her brains out. But what did you do instead? You went back to your porn fantasies. Then when this whole case happened with me, I helped to bring those dark feelings of yours back to the surface."

"You're…..you're crazy. I love, Scully and I would never try and hurt her like that."

"Of course not, G-Man. You see, that's where you're right. You don't want to hurt sweet, Dana like in those thoughts of yours. You care too much about her as sickening as that is. So, instead you choose to do it to Isabelle instead."

Mulder shook his head. "No!"

Jeremy turned and walked back toward Isabelle on the bed. "Admit that you liked it G-Man." He lifted Isabelle's lifeless head by her hair. "You loved fucking her and making her cry out your name. You loved pounding into her and making her scream. You loved tying her up and using handcuffs giving you that sense of power. And then….taking her life gave you that sense that you owned her soul forever even in death. The ultimate power over someone. You said you would make her pay and she did. She died for the one you love. She died so that you could keep your precious sweet, Dana from knowing the true bastard that resides inside."

"I didn't kill her!" Mulder screamed. "You did!"

"Stop denying yourself G-Man it will only make your inner pain worse." Jeremy let go of Isabelle and walked toward Mulder again. "So, you see….I am helping you fulfill those dark fantasies of yours without hurting Dana. Of course….I could always change that."

"What….what do you mean?"

"I of course have every reason to wish sweet Dana dead. After all, she is the only one who escaped me and I must admit the most delicious I've tasted. I am drawn to her like a moth to a flame. Or perhaps….it is the other way around?" He gave an evil grin. "However….I am willing to let her live if you do something for me."

"Do…do something for you?"

"Yes. Like it or not I am now a part of you G-Man so you'd better get used to it. And as you have seen, I am much more powerful than you. Which means I could make you kill your sweet, Dana and there would be nothing you could do about it."

"What….what do you want of me?"

"It's quite simple really. I will help you continue to act out these dark feelings of yours thus preventing you from killing Dana."

"How….how will you do that?"

Jeremy leaned toward Mulder. "You will continue from where I left off."

"Wha…what?"

"You will continue my murder spree with the prostitutes where I left off. You will walk the streets at night searching for your victims. Then…you will take them back to my apartment, or yours if you wish although I would assume you would rather not due to incriminating evidence. And….you will live out your dark fantasies through them doing whatever you wish, through me of course. And then when the night is over…you can return to your sweet, Dana and all is right with the world."

Mulder couldn't believe what he was being asked. Go out and murder innocent women? "No fucking way!"

"You do as I ask." Jeremy answered. "Or….I will make you take out those fantasies on your sweet, Dana. And you can hear her screams and see her blood flow from her body. It's your choice but I advise you not to test me, G-Man. You've already seen what I am capable of."

Mulder lowered his head in defeat. He knew he had no choice if he was going to save Scully. It would be better that a stranger die than her. "All….all right."

Jeremy smiled. "Don't take it so bad, G-Man. You're a smart man when it comes to cover ups are you not? Keep that up and no one will ever know. You fulfill your dark side and Dana still lives." He moved away from Mulder and back to the body of Isabelle. "You said you always wanted to get into the mind of a serial killer? Find out what makes them tick so to speak? Well, now you are about to find out." He then let out an evil laugh.

"No!" Mulder screamed as he fell to his knees holding his head. "Scully!"

* * *

"Scully!" Mulder yelled as he sat straight up in the bed. 

"Mulder?" Scully murmured as she was awakened by his scream. She turned and saw him holding his chest trying to control his breathing. "What is it?"

Mulder took in a couple deep breaths. "I….I had a nightmare."

"Nightmare? Is it….like the ones you told you had while I was gone?"

Mulder nodded slowly. "I….I thought they'd gone away."

Scully reached over and pulled him to her. "You want to talk about it?"

"No."

Scully pulled back and looked deep into his eyes. "Mulder, it's obvious that these nightmares have really upset you or you wouldn't be having them so much. Please, talk to me?"

Mulder looked back at her tender bluish green eyes. As much as it pained him, he knew he couldn't tell her. Not that he could remember the entire conversation with Jeremy anyway. He just didn't want to scare her not after everything they had gone through. "It's…it's nothing, Scully."

"Mulder, you can't lie to me. How long have we known each other now?" She sighed. "The only way you can prevent this nightmare from controlling you is to release it. Now, please tell me."

Mulder sighed. "Blood."

"In your nightmare you see blood?"

Mulder nodded. "And….I hear screams." He was telling her the truth. The nightmares he had had while she was gone were about blood and screams. He couldn't consciously remember the murder of Isabelle or the conversation between he and Jeremy.

"What…what do you think it means?"

Mulder shook his head and closed his eyes. "I…I don't know. All I know is it happens over and over again. And….I end up losing you."

"Losing me?"

"At the end of the nightmare I find your dead body on the ground. And…there's blood all over you. I…cradle your head but its too late."

"Oh, Mulder." Scully reached forward and hugged him tightly. "It's ok. It was just a nightmare." She stroked his hair. "And I'm not going anywhere do you hear me? I'm staying right here."

Mulder pulled back and looked at her. "You….you promise?"

Scully smiled. "I promise." She then reached forward and kissed his lips tenderly.

Mulder trembled as he felt Scully's kiss. Her kiss or even just a simple touch could always make his pain go away. It was part of the reason he was with her and why he had confessed his love for her. He touched the side of her face softly as he returned her kiss. He then pulled back and placed some of her red hair behind her ear. "You…are so beautiful." He whispered.

Scully smiled and reached out her hand stroking his cheek. "I told you I'm not going anywhere. You believe me now?"

Mulder nodded and then reached forward taking her lips in a passionate kiss. As they continued to kiss, he gently pushed her down onto the bed and hovered over her. He still had a hard time believing after all these years that they had progressed to this step but he couldn't be happier. He still planned to propose to her when the time was right. But for now he would just indulge himself in all of her that he could. Cherish these precious moments that they had. He took his hand and ran it slowly down her soft skin to her breast. He started to tease her nipple with his fingers causing them to become instantly erect. He could feel a desire growing within him as he felt her body rubbing against his. He pulled back from her lips and started to kiss her neck slowly.

"Mulder." Scully moaned as she craned her neck and placed her hands on the back of his head, encouraging him.

Mulder met her request and started to kiss her harder. He lowered himself and started alternating his kisses with lips and tongue as he moved down her body. He loved to worship her body and treat her like the goddess he thought she was.

Scully gasped as she felt his lips all over her delicate skin. "Mmmm….Mulder, yes. Let me make all of your pain go away."

His lips reached her breasts and he flicked his tongue at a nipple before taking it into his mouth. His concentration was then interrupted by the sound of his cell.

Scully heard the ringing too and her eyes flew open. "Mulder, it's….it's your cell."

"Let them get voice mail." He murmured as he continued to play with her nipple.

Scully took in breaths as she reached over and picked up the cell, checking the ID. "It's….it's Skinner, Mulder. It…it could be important."

Mulder reluctantly let go of her nipple and sighed. "All right, fine but you owe me." He answered with a grin. He took the cell from her. "This had better be important is all I have to say." He then answered it. "Hello?"

"Mulder, it's Skinner. I apologize for calling you at this time of morning."

"It's all right. Guess I can't totally get away from the force of habit of having to be up early as an FBI Agent can I? What's up?"

Skinner sighed. "Well, I just received some rather stressing news. There's been a murder."

"A murder?"

"The body of a young woman was found not too long ago in her apartment. She was….raped and cut pretty badly."

"Oh god, I'm sorry to hear that. Well, Scully is here so I'm sure she can help you with…"

"There's more, Mulder." He paused. "According to the way the body was cut it appears it was Jeremy Reinsfeld."

"Wha…what?"

"The angle of the cuts and how they were made are his characteristics. Look, I know you aren't an agent anymore but…well I could really use your help on this. Would you mind coming down here with Agent Scully?"

"You can count on me, Sir." Mulder answered.

"Good. I'll call you back in a few minutes with details on the location."

Mulder turned off his cell and moved to the edge of the bed.

"What is it?" Scully asked.

Mulder reached down and grabbed his boxers. "Looks like it's going to be look old times after all. Skinner said there's been a murder and he wants you and I down there to check it out."

"Really?" Scully asked. "Well, I guess we'll have to take a rain check on our love making session then." She reached over to the side and grabbed her robe. "Did he say anything specific about the murder?"

"Apparently a young woman was raped and murdered in her apartment last night." Mulder answered as he walked toward the bathroom.

"How terrible. Anything else?"

"Yeah." Mulder stopped in front of the bathroom door. "Skinner said the cuts were a signature of one particular serial killer."

"Who?"

"Jeremy Reinsfeld." Mulder answered before disappearing into the bathroom.

* * *

** NOTE: **Sorry it took so long for me to update! Had damn writers block but I think I overcame it now! As you can see things are getting interesting. Thank you to those of you who keep reading this and more to come! 

Dana


	24. Scully's New Case

Mulder and Scully pulled up to the address that Skinner had called them back and told them to meet him at. Mulder glanced up at the apartment. "I know this place."

"You do?" Scully asked as she undid her seatbelt and looked at him.

"Yeah. Remember that psychic who came to exorcise your apartment?"

Scully paused. "Uhhhh….Isabelle?"

Mulder nodded. "Yeah, her apartment is here." He undid his seatbelt and climbed out of the car.

Scully stepped out of the driver's side and headed up the stairs into the complex followed by Mulder. She flashed her ID and walked past several officers and under some yellow tape that was by a doorway. After assuring the officers that Mulder was there to assist her, he followed her to the room.

Skinner met them at the door. "Agent Scully, Mulder." He led them over toward the bedroom. "The body is in here."

Mulder glanced around the apartment that was now becoming all too familiar to him. There was no possible way not to distinguish the books, tarot decks and incense. "No, it…it can't be true." He whispered.

"Mulder?" Skinner asked when he noticed that Mulder was not following them. "In here, please." He walked into the bedroom. "Victim was found here in the bedroom."

Scully looked at Skinner. "Who found her?"

"A woman by the name of Lisa McCormick apparently stopped by to see her. She got the key from the landlord and found her in the bedroom. She also positively identified the body." Skinner glanced at his notepad. "The victim's name was…"

"Isabelle." Mulder finished. "Isabelle Galloway."

Skinner looked up at Mulder. "You know her?"

"Yeah, you could say that." Mulder answered. "I hired her for something."

Scully looked at Mulder. "Wait, Mulder are you saying this is the same Isabelle who…"

"Did an exorcism at your apartment. Yes, Scully it is."

Scully gasped. "Oh god. I'm…I'm so sorry, Mulder."

Mulder shrugged his shoulders. "Guess she wasn't psychic enough or she would have seen this coming."

Skinner could sense the tension in the room from Mulder's remark and cleared his throat. "She was found here in the bedroom lying here."

Scully snapped on some latex gloves and started to examine the body. "Throat was slashed and…judging by the marks I would say it was a knife of some kind. And….the direction of the cuts would also indicate that the suspect is left-handed."

"The medical examiner who was in here earlier, came to those same conclusions as well." Skinner answered. "He also found blood at the base of the legs and in the vaginal area to indicate some kind of sexual assault."

Scully examined the legs. "And there is some bruising on the upper thighs as well to indicate that."

Skinner turned to Mulder. "Mulder, I know this is hard for you being as you know the victim but I need you to take a look at these injuries and tell me if it's Jeremy Reinsfeld or not."

"Sir, you are asking me to examine the body of a woman who you believe was killed by a man who is dead."

"I realize what I am asking you to do, Mulder. But you have to admit that it wouldn't be the first time something strange like this has happened in your line of work."

"With all due respect, Sir, my FORMER line of work." Mulder replied back curtly.

"Just please examine the body and give me your honest opinion, Mulder." Skinner answered back.

Mulder looked down at Isabelle's lifeless body. All he could see in his mind were the times they had made love together. He could hear her cries of passion and feel her lips on his. He knew he was going to have to keep his concentration on the case though or he would go mad. Not to mention the fact that Scully would leave him if she found out that he had an affair with Isabelle. He cleared his throat and walked over to the body. "Ok, cut across the throat which was definitely a trademark of Reinsfeld. Also cuts across the chest which look like they were made by the same type of weapon." He glanced up at Isabelle's wrists. "Wrists…bruised and with red marks indicating she was bound. Until you get actual forensic results, Sir I would say that either this was Jeremy Reinsfeld or a damn good copy cat killer."

Skinner nodded. "Agent Scully, I want you to get an autopsy performed on Miss Galloway as soon as possible. The sooner we can do that, the sooner we can find out just what it is we're dealing with here."

"Sir, were there any fingerprints found?" Scully asked.

Skinner shook his head. "It appears our killer used gloves."

"What about semen? Did he use a condom?" Mulder asked.

"From what the medical examiner could tell, there were no indications of any kind of latex irritation." Skinner answered. "A swab test is being conducted as we speak so we should know more later in the day. That is of course, if he was a secretor."

"If it was Jeremy Reinsfeld, he was a secretor." Mulder muttered.

Skinner was then interrupted by his cell and answered it. "Yeah. Ok, sure hold on." He looked at Scully. "Agent Scully, I need you to get down to the city morgue to converse with the medical examiner before the autopsy." He then looked at Mulder. "Thanks for your help, I'll let you know what we turn up." He then went back to his cell call and walked away.

"What a welcome back to work." Scully sighed. "Looks like my day is already planned out for me. Just like the good ole days."

"Not quite." Mulder answered. "Because if that were true, I would be going with you for that autopsy."

"Oh, that's….that's right. Well….maybe we could have dinner later?"

"Actually we had reservations for lunch at _Portobello'_s remember?"

Scully's heart sank. "Oh, I forgot. I'm sorry, Mulder really I am."

Mulder shrugged his shoulders. "What's there to be sorry about, Scully? You're the FBI Agent now, not me. And you have a job to do."

"But….you've been trying to get those reservations for weeks!"

"It happens." Mulder answered. "I mean how were we to know that this would happen, right?"

Scully let out a flustered sigh. "Well, I'll….I'll make it up to you, I promise. What about dinner? I wouldn't think the autopsy would take the whole night."

"Sounds like a plan." Mulder answered. "You take care of the autopsy and I'll take care of dinner."

"Ok." Scully looked back at him. "I…I would kiss you but well…"

"I know, Scully. It's ok." Mulder answered her with a reassuring smile. "You'd better get going before Skinner sends out the hounds."

Scully smiled. "Ok, I'll see you later on then. I'll call you if I find out anything." She gave him one last smile and then left the room.

Now alone in the room, Mulder looked down at Isabelle's dead and violated body. "Oh, Isabelle, I never wished this on you." He whispered. "Even good girls can make mistakes. But I promise I will find out who did this to you." He watched as the paramedics came in with a gurney and then placed Isabelle on it.

It kind of saddened him that he would never know whether their child was a boy or a girl. But at least now Scully would never know of his infidelity.

* * *

After speaking with the medical examiner, Scully wasted no time in getting to the autopsy. The medical examiner had mainly wanted to show Scully the records of the previous victims which had the same marks. He was also under the impression that this was just merely a copy cat killing and nothing else. Until there was actual physical evidence to connect this murder to Jeremy Reinsfeld, it was going to be viewed as just someone trying to mimic his murders. It wasn't like others trying to immortalize some of their favorite killers hadn't done it before in the past. 

She turned on the examination light and then spoke into a mic. "Date is the 6th of December, time is…" She glanced at her watch. "12:00 p.m. Special Agent Dana Scully chief investigator. Victim's name is Isabelle Galloway, 26-year-old white female Caucasian. Probable cause of death…" She glanced at the body. "Death by severing of the throat, particularly the jugular. Now starting a visual examination. Judging by the marks on the body, it would indicate the weapon was some kind of knife and the direction of the cuts would indicate that the murderer was left handed. Deep cuts located on the chest area particularly above the breasts. There is also bruising on the thighs and on the wrists to indicate abuse." She examined the wrists. "Also red marks on the wrists to indicate some kind of bondage." She examined the wrists closer. "Appear to be also tiny cuts indicating the bondage was most likely from rope." She picked up her scalpel. "Beginning Y-incision…."

* * *

As Scully went about her task of taking out various body organs and weighing them, she was interrupted by the sound of a door opening. 

"Excuse me, Agent Scully?" Asked the medical examiner from the doorway. "May I come in?"

"Dr. Rattler, of course. Please." Scully answered as she turned off her recorder. "I was just finishing the weighing of the lungs."

"What have you found so far?" Dr. Rattler asked as he stepped into the autopsy room.

Scully lowered her medical mask." Well, heart and lungs appear normal. No abnormalities of any kind to indicate they contributed to the cause of death. Cause of death appears to be loss of blood from the jugular more then anything."

"What about sexual assault?"

"I did find vaginal tearing to indicate sexual assault trauma along with the bruises on the thighs as was reported earlier."

"We did find semen from the sample that was taken at the crime scene."

"And?"

"And….we've gone through the test over and over again but we come up with the same results."

Scully tilted her head. "Which are?"

"The DNA matches that of Jeremy Reinsfeld."

"You're certain?"

"As I said, we've redone the test and each time get the same result. This woman was raped by Jeremy Reinsfeld."

"What about a brother?"

Dr. Rattler shook his head. "Jeremy Reinsfeld was an only child."

"Well, there's always sperm donors…"

"Agent Scully, it would have taken some one a lot of time to plant something like that. Not to mention the fact that they would have had to find it first. Believe me, I don't want to believe these results either but the fact is…they are what they are."

"Maybe, we should examine the uterus more closely and see if anything else can be uncovered." Scully answered as she moved back over to the body. She started to examine the uterus carefully and then pulled back. "Oh my god."

"What is it?" Dr. Rattler asked as he walked over to the body.

"Well, not only was Isabelle Galloway raped but she was also pregnant." Scully answered as she looked back at him.

"Pregnancy as a result of the rape?"

"Well, it is a possibility although it's hard to tell without taking a sample and putting it through some tests."

"Then I advise we do so." Dr. Rattler answered. "Because if we can determine if the pregnancy was a result of the rape or was BEFORE it…"

"Then it may determine if there may have been some kind of motive." Scully finished.

"Let me know what you find." Dr. Sattler answered before leaving the room.

Scully glanced over at her watch and sighed. She knew there was no possible way that she was going to be able to go to dinner with Mulder now. She pulled off her latex gloves and washed her hands. Walking over to her coat, she pulled out her cell and dialed.

"Hello?"

"Mulder, it's me."

"Hey, slice n' dice! How's it goin'? Working up an appetite?"

"Actually, that's what I'm calling you about." Scully paused. "I'm not going to be able to make that dinner tonight, Mulder."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"There's….been some new developments concerning the autopsy and I need to run some tests."

"Why, what did you find?"

"Well, the results came from the vaginal swab and the DNA matches Jeremy Reinsfeld perfectly."

"Are you sure?"

"The test was done several times with the same result."

"Looks like you got a real X-File on your hands now. Don't think those facts can be ignored now."

"There's more." Scully took a breath. "I just examined the uterus and there is indications that Isabelle was pregnant."

The smile that had been on Mulder's face now faded as heard Scully's last sentence. His worst fear had just been realized, Isabelle had been pregnant and now Scully knew about it. She would do a test on the fetus and find out that he was the father. Then, all of his future plans with Scully would be ruined forever and all because of stupidity. He felt his hand holding his cell go limp.

"Mulder? Are you there?"

He could almost hear laughter in his mind as images began to flood through it. He could see Scully walking into his office the first day, see her smiling at him, see her laughing as he told her a joke, kissing her in her apartment. Tears came to his eyes as he once again saw himself making love to her after coming back from the 50's dance. Everything in his life had seemed perfect until that day she went to her mothers. Then had come the temptation and he had succumbed to it. He had thought that death had saved him from facing his consequences. But now it seemed as if death was laughing at him now. And now his images were nothing but shattered pieces of glass. He let go of his cell and sent it crashing to the ground.

* * *

**Note: **I'm sorry it took so long to get this next chapter done! Stress makes things VERY hard. Anyway thank you to those who continue to read this. I am trying very hard to keep it rolling and do some good storytelling! I promise you there is more to come. 

Dana


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